LONDON, June 14 (Reuters) - China's state oil group Sinopec has made a 4.8 billion pound ($7.92 billion) bid for Addax Petroleum Corp., a London-listed oil exploration group with fields in Kurdistan and Nigeria, the Sunday Times reported.
Without citing sources, the paper said Sinopec put forward the offer last week, trumping an earlier bid from the Korean National Oil Corporation.
Addax has one of only two operational fields in Kurdistan, the northern region of Iraq, where an oil export pipeline via Turkey was opened earlier this month, increasing interest in those with operations in the area.
Sinopec was not immediately reachable for comment.
Addax, also listed in Canada, issued a statement saying it was "aware of press speculation involving the corporation and the interest in it by third parties with respect to a possible acquisition or business combination".
"Addax Petroleum acknowledges that it has held preliminary discussions with third parties expressing an interest in a potential transaction with the Corporation. While such preliminary discussions are ongoing, no assurance can be given that a transaction will be completed," it said.
Addax, founded in 1994, is headed by Jean Claude Gandur, who holds a 3.6 percent stake in the firm directly and controls an investment vehicle with an additional 35 percent state, according to the paper.
($1=.6059 pound) (Reporting by Luke Baker; Editing by Jerry Norton)