/REUTERS, Peking, September 6, 05/ - China National Petroleum Corp. (CNPC) has denied it is in talks to sell as much as half of its $4.18 billion acquisition of a strategically important oil company to Kazakhstan's state- owned oil firm.

The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday the deal by CNPC to sell a 33 to 50 percent stake in PetroKazakhstan Inc., a Canadian firm with operations in the neighbouring central Asia state, to KazMunaiGaz (KMG) was expected to be sealed in the next few weeks.

"There are no such talks," said a spokesman for CNPC's International Department who declined to be named. The department is responsible for the company's foreign businesses.

The newspaper also quoted a spokesman denying that the company was involved in negotiations to sell part of its stake.

CNPC is the state-owned parent company of Asia's top listed oil firm, PetroChina.

It won an auction for PetroKazakhstan in August, beating a competing bid by a joint venture between ONGC Videsh Ltd., the international arm of India's state-controlled Oil & Natural Gas Corp., and an investment company owned by steel tycoon Lakshmi Mittal.

The losing consortium has said it is still considering making a higher counter bid.

CNPC's acquisition of PetroKazakhstan was one of a series of deals in the past few years in which China has sought to secure sources of crude oil by buying foreign companies.

[2005-09-06]