China oilfield set to buy foreign firm

China Oilfield Services, the drilling and equipment arm of top Chinese offshore oil producer CNOOC group, is in talks to buy a foreign firm this year in an acquisition that would dwarf its purchase of Russia's STU.

Chief executive Yuan Guangyu said that the deal would be much larger than the takeover of STU from Russia's TNK-BP - its first acquisition abroad - which could be worth anywhere from $10 million to $66m, according media reports. China Oilfield now views Russia, the Middle East and the Gulf of Mexico as strategic markets it needs to explore.

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