Chevron Corp., the U.S. oil producer divesting assets to counter an energy-price slump, is seeking about $2 billion from a sale of natural gas assets in Bangladesh, according to people familiar with the matter.

The San Ramon, California-based company is in talks to sell its interests in natural gas fields it operates in the South Asian nation, according to the people. The sale has drawn interest from suitors including Indian and Chinese oil producers, the people said, asking not to be identified because the information is private.

Energy companies have announced $41.9 billion of asset sales this year, after crude prices fell to the lowest level in more than a decade, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Chevron, the largest U.S. oil producer after Exxon Mobil Corp., is seeking buyers for Asian geothermal assets that could fetch as much as $3 billion and is also holding talks to sell assets in Indonesia and Thailand, people familiar with the matter said earlier.

The oil producer posted its third straight quarterly loss in July as a collapse in oil prices forced it to write down the value of oil and natural wells. The San Ramon, California-based company reported a loss of $1.47 billion, or 78 cents a share, compared with profit of $571 million, or 30 cents, a year earlier.

Chevron has also invited second-round bids for its Asian geothermal assets from firms including China General Nuclear Power Corp., people familiar with the matter said in September.

Chevron operates the Bibiyana, Jalalabad and Moulavi Bazar fields in Bangladesh and sells all the production to state oil company Petrobangla, according to its website. Its net daily production last year averaged 720 MMcfg and 3,000 bbl of condensate.

No final agreement has been reached with any party, the people said. Cam Van Ast, a Perth-based spokesman for Chevron, declined to comment.

Source: www.worldoil.com