OZ Minerals, which was due to refinance $1.1 billion of debt on Friday, received an extension from its bankers to March 31.
The company reported a net loss of $2.5 billion for calendar 2008, against a $305.8 million profit in 2007, after asset writedowns and commodity price falls.
Excluding those impacts, OZ Minerals's underlying loss was $66.4 million.
"The result does not reflect the sound operating performance of our operations, which consistently met production forecasts," OZ Minerals chief executive Andrew Michelmore said in a statement.
Chinese state-owned resource group Minmetals Non-ferrous Metals Company (Minmetals) has thrown the debt-laden OZ Minerals a lifeline through a $2.6 billion takeover bid.
Minmetals is offering 82.5 cents for each OZ Minerals share under a scheme of arrangement, which has been recommended by directors.
OZ Minerals has been forced to pursue asset sales and other cost-reduction measures including, job and production cuts and mine closures to conserve cash as it tries to repay its debt. The company is continuing to pursue the sale of the Martabe gold and silver project in Indonesia and the Golden Grove polymetallic mine in Western Australia.
"OZ Minerals board and management responded swiftly to the impact of these price declines with the suspension of multiple capital projects totalling $495 million and by cutting operational expenditure by $185 million," Mr Michelmore said.
OZ Minerals delivered an 8 per cent increase in revenue to $1.28 billion for the year, largely due to the additional contribution of the Zinifex assets for the second half.
The company was formed through the merger of copper and gold producer Oxiana and zinc and lead miner Zinifex last year.
OZ Minerals did not declare a final dividend "as a result of lower earnings in order to conserve cash".
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