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DUBAI, Oct 14 (Reuters) - The United Arab Emirates has askedbidders for its biggest onshore oilfields to extend their offersby two months until Dec. 31, sources familiar with the mattersaid, as the country considers bringing in Asian firms afterdecades-long partnerships with western majors.
Nine Asian and western firms have bid for stakes in the AbuDhabi Company for Onshore Oil Operations (ADCO) concession aftera deal with western oil majors that dates back to the 1970sexpired in January.
State-run Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) has askedthe nine bidding companies to extend offers that were due toexpire around Oct. 22 until Dec. 21, three sources said.
Industry observers say any changes in the concessions wouldbe made at the highest decision-making body for the oil and gasindustry, the Supreme Petroleum Council. They say there is adifference in opinion inside the SPC over whether to stick withwestern companies, or make room for newcomers from Asia, whilesome would like to see ADNOC operating the fields alone.
ADNOC could not be reached for comment and none of the ninecompanies would comment. One source said however that it wasunlikely any company would refuse ADCO's request.
"Is any company going to say 'no our bids have expired'? Theanswer is no. No company is going to go through this effort andthen say our offers are not valid anymore," the source said.
ExxonMobil, Royal Dutch Shell, Total and BP - have each held 9.5 percent equitystakes in the ADCO concession since the 1970s. Portugal's Partexhad a 2 percent stake, and the rest was held by ADNOC.
After the deal expired in January, ADNOC took 100 percent ofthe concession. Shell, Total and BP have made their new bids,which are being evaluated by the government of Abu Dhabi, thecapital of the UAE, while Exxon has decided against bidding,sources have told Reuters.
U.S. firm Occidental Petroleum Corp, Italy's ENI, China National Petroleum Corp. (CNPC), Norway'sStatoil, Japan's Inpex and Korea National Oil Corp havealso bid for the new deal.
Each company submitted two proposals last year - one for a 5percent stake and another for a 10 percent stake, with a oneyear validity, the first source said. (Reporting by Rania El Gamal, additional reporting by GwladysFouche, Michel Rose, James Topham, Stephen Jewkes; editing bySusan Thomas)
