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Spanish Repsol unit may sell stake to China's CNPC

(China Daily/Agencies)
Updated: 2009-07-08 07:59

China National Petroleum Corp, the country's largest oil company, could pay up to $14.5 billion for 75 percent of Spanish oil major Repsol's Argentine unit YPF, sources said yesterday.

CNPC, the parent company of top Asian oil and gas firm PetroChina, and Repsol have begun talks, sources with knowledge of the matter said.

The sources, not authorized to speak publicly, said an offer from CNPC - which in 2007 failed twice to buy all of YPF's Latin American assets amid wrangling over terms - had yet to be put on paper or formally submitted.

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China's top offshore oil and gas producer CNOOC, India's Oil and Natural Gas Corporation and Russian companies are also eyeing YPF, newspaper reports said.

Repsol, ONGC, and CNOOC all declined to comment, and a CNPC spokesman said he had no information on the deal.

Last week Repsol, which is running short of reserves but has been looking to sell YPF for some time, said it had several offers for a stake in the unit, but none were firm.

Analysts have valued YPF at around $15-17 billion, so the around $19 billion implied by the bid CNPC is mulling would offer shareholders only a modest premium.

However, CNOOC is reported to be eyeing the remaining 25 percent of YPF and analysts say CNPC and CNOOC could make a joint bid, although a clear timetable remains unclear.