* Sale of 15 pct stake could raise up to $5 bln - sources
* Interest from players in Asia - sources
* Eni CEO has already spoken of selling down stake further (Adds source comments, background)
By Sophie Sassard and Stephen Jewkes
LONDON/MILAN, March 27 (Reuters) - Eni is close tomandating a bank to sell a stake of up to 15 percent in itsgiant gas field in Mozambique which could raise as much as $5billion for the Italian oil and gas major, banking sources said.
Eni sold 20 percent of its Mozambique offshore gas acreageto Chinese oil company CNPC last year in a deal wortharound $4.2 billion.
The Italian state-controlled major still has a 50 percentstake in its biggest ever gas discovery - known as Area 4 - andChief Executive Paolo Scaroni has previously talked aboutselling down further.
"Eni has mandated a bank to sell a 15 percent stake in itsMozambique gas field in a possible $5 billion deal. A lot ofplayers, especially from Asia, are expected to show up," one ofthe sources said.
Another source said top Chinese offshore oil and gasproducer CNOOC Ltd was high up on the list ofpotential buyers because it was keen to build up a liquefiednatural gas (LNG) business.
Sources have previously told Reuters other oil majors suchas ExxonMobil, Chevron, Shell and Total could be interested in Eni's block. But a deal withthese larger companies might threaten Eni's control of a projectthat is crucial to its future.
A sector expert also said that it had become more difficultfor oil and gas majors to justify large upstream investmentswith their investment committees because the focus is onimproving the performance of existing assets rather thanexpanding capacity.
Eni declined to comment.
Eni's acreage in Mozambique is thought to contain resourcesof more than 85 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of gas. It is part ofthe wider Rovuma basin that holds more than 150 tcf, enough tosupply Germany, Britain, France and Italy for 15 years.
Cash from the sale could help fund investments by Eni in thearea estimated at around $50 billion.
"A 15 percent stake would be worth around the same, pre-tax,as the 20 percent stake sold to the Chinese last year," a thirdbanking source said.
Some analysts told Reuters last year the Chinese offer forthe 20 percent stake had been below their value estimates.
In February Scaroni said Eni could reduce its stake in Area4 to 35 percent. "We are looking for a potential partner who isalso a buyer of gas, possibly in the region," he said.
Scaroni's third mandate at the helm of Eni expires in arounda month's time and some government and industry sources say hemight not be reappointed as the new government of Matteo Renziseeks fresh faces to head state-controlled groups.
(Reporting by Sophie Sassard and Stephen Jewkes; Editing byPravin Char)