UPDATE:Marathon To Sell Angola-Field Stake To Cnooc,Sinopec

   (Updates with bidding history, additional information about China's interest in Angola). 
 
   By Brian Baskin 
   DOW JONES NEWSWIRES 
 

Marathon Oil Corp. (MRO) agreed to sell a 20% stake in a group of oil fields off the coast of Angola to Cnooc International Ltd. (CNOOC) and Sinopec Corp. (SNP), the latest move by China to secure access to energy resources.

Cnooc and Sinopec, also known as China Petroleum & Chemical, together are to buy the undivided interest for $1.3 billion. Marathon, of Houston, will hold onto a remaining 10%.

The sale would mark the completion of a process that began nearly a year ago when the Chinese companies, both state-controlled, made an unsuccessful bid for a piece of a license area, known as Block 32. At the time, Marathon was thought to be holding out for an offer of $2 billion or more. The recent oil price crash, which saw futures plunge from $145 a barrel to just below $35 in February, sparked a reassessment of asset valuations.

Crude oil, which currently trades around $60 a barrel, has stabilized in recent weeks, reviving dealmaking appetites.

Chinese oil companies have mounted a global effort to acquire reserves to feed rapid growth in domestic demand and to replace declining production at home. China National Petroleum Corp. partnered with BP PLC (BP) to earlier this month win the right to develop Iraq's giant Rumaila oil field, and Cnooc is preparing to bid on the Jubilee field offshore Ghana.

Angola, China's biggest foreign supplier of crude for much of 2008, was the recipient of a $1 billion loan from the Chinese government earlier this year. The country, which competes with Nigeria for the title of Africa's largest oil producer, was also the site of an early overseas oil field acquisition by Sinopec in 2006.

Marathon, which also has refinery operations, is more than a year into its plan to divest between $2 billion and $4 billion of assets. The company had previously announced 12 successful exploration wells in Block 32, which hasn't yet begun commercial oil production. The remaining interests are held by operator Total SA (TOT), Angola state-owned oil company Sonangol, Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) and Galp Energia SA (GALP.LB). These partners have rights of first refusal over the stake.

The deal is expected to close by year-end and requires government and regulatory approvals.

-By Brian Baskin, Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-2453; [e-mail]

(Tess Stynes in New York contributed to this article)

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