China's CNPC seen tapping Exxon-Rosneft assets

China's largest oil producer, known as CNPC, has made more than $9 billion of purchases this year -- and has considered another $4 billion, according to people familiar with the matter -- as part of a plan to double overseas output by 2015. Spending will likely accelerate under Zhou Jiping, who was named chairman in April and has more than a decade of experience in international operations, CLSA Asia-Pacific Markets said.

CNPC is ramping up deals to make up for lost ground after Sinopec Group and Cnooc Ltd., two other Chinese state-owned energy companies, outspent the producer by about $50 billion on overseas transactions in the five years through 2012, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. CNPC's success with mature fields makes an Exxon asset in Iraq a target, Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. said, while a supply agreement with Rosneft may lead to deals with the state-controlled Russian producer, according to UOB-Kay Hian Ltd, Kazinform refers to Bloomberg.

"CNPC's skill set makes it a good fit for many developed onshore oilfields in central Asia, the Middle East and South America," Neil Beveridge, a Hong Kong-based oil and gas analyst at Bernstein, said by phone. "CNPC's state-owned background is more of a bonus rather than a burden when it seeks acquisitions in those regions."

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