OREANDA-NEWS. August 13, 2012. CHINESE oil and gas giant PetroChina is poised to acquire Molopo Energy's Queensland coal seam gas assets in a deal that could reignite corporate activity in the sector.

The acquisition will see PetroChina pick up interests in five coal seam gas projects to the west of Gladstone, where three coal seam gas-fed liquefied natural gas projects are under construction.

According to a source, the deal is expected to be announced as early as today. Analysts late last year valued Molopo's Queensland asset base at USD 42 million- USD 82m, although both global economic conditions and oil prices have cooled since then.

China's state-owned energy giants have been making oil and gas acquisitions around the world as they look to shore up the reserves needed to underpin its growing energy demand.

Last week, China's CNOOC launched an agreed USD 15.1 billion takeover offer for Canadian oil and gas producer Nexen, while fellow Chinese giant Sinopec paid USD 1.5bn for a stake in the British assets of Talisman Energy.