Chinese power generation firm Huachen Energy Co. told a group of bondholders that it faces difficulties repaying $956 million in bonds due in December, raising the risk of fresh delinquencies on debt it first defaulted on five years ago.

Representatives of the company, once one of China’s largest private power producers, told creditors on a call Friday that the repayment challenge was due to weaker-than-expected earnings, difficulties selling assets and limited support from parent Wintime Energy Group Co., according to people familiar with the matter.

Huachen Energy has been looking to push back the maturity of those bonds by another six years, after a restructuring exercise following its original default in 2021 extended the deadline till December. On the call, the firm also gave further details about its proposal to delay the payment again, said the people who requested anonymity discussing private matters.

The company plans to hold one-on-one talks with some bondholders this week to seek feedback, the people added.

While Friday’s call flagged Huachen Energy’s challenges to pay the debt in two months, if creditors were to agree to a proposal of a further delay, that risk would dissipate at least for now. Calls to Huachen Energy and Wintime Energy went unanswered.

The energy company’s woes are an example of the continued struggles faced by some of China’s distressed firms years after restructuring, as the country’s growth slowdown and shifting economic priorities makes debt recovery harder.

Huachen Energy has about $627 million in dollar notes outstanding, data compiled by Bloomberg show. It also has 2.2 billion yuan ($329 million) worth of yuan bonds that are no longer publicly traded, said the people familiar with the matter.