Takeover bid for Emerald Energy?

LONDON, July 14 (UPI) -- London's Emerald Energy said talks are in the early stages on a possible takeover from Chinese state-owned oil companies moving in Middle East markets.

Sinopec, the private Chinese petroleum company, and the state-owned China National Offshore Oil Corp. emerged as possible buyers of the London-listed Emerald.

The takeover possibility comes as Sinopec increases its footprint in Middle East markets. A $7.4 billion takeover in June of Addax Petroleum put the Chinese company in a position to develop oil assets in the Kurdish regions of Iraq.

Emerald, for its part, holds interests in nearby fields with its Gulfsands Petroleum venture developing oil reserves in Syria near the Iraqi border, which boosted the financial outlook for Emerald in 2008.

Any takeover of Emerald, however, depends on the activity of Russian mogul Michael Kroupeev, the Financial Times reports. His Waterford Financial Investment holds a 29.5 percent stake in Emerald.

Emerald said nothing is certain in terms of the potential takeover but acknowledged negotiations are under way.

"Discussions are at a preliminary stage," the company said.