Bloomberg: HPCL Unit Said to Plan Spending $300 Million on Overseas Assets

Hindustan Petroleum Corp., India’s third-largest state-owned refiner, plans to spend as much as $300 million for a stake in an active oil and gas field through a unit, a company official said.

The unit, Prize Petroleum Co., which focuses on the upstream oil business, is considering a minority stake in Russian or Nigerian assets, said the official, who asked not to be identified because the information is confidential. A 50 percent slump in crude the past year has eroded the value of production assets, making them attractive acquisition targets, according to the official.

Oil has fluctuated since slumping near $42 a barrel last month as concern that China’s economy is slowing fueled volatility in markets. Prices are down more than 25 percent from this year’s closing peak in May amid a global oversupply Goldman Sachs Group Inc. predicts may keep prices low for the next 15 years. MORE