* OGDCL already owns stakes in BP Pakistan assets
* Decision on bid likely next week
* BP's fields in Pakistan estimated at worth $690 million
By Augustine Anthony
ISLAMABAD, Nov 25 (Reuters) - Pakistan's biggest listed firm, the Oil and Gas Development Co. Ltd. (OGDCL) , is mulling a joint bid for BP's assets in Pakistan and has a Dec. 6 deadline to make an offer, sources close to OGDCL said on Thursday.
BP announced its plans to sell its upstream assets in Pakistan in July, as part of a $10 billion global asset sale aimed at raising cash to pay for its Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
"OGDCL and Pakistan Petroleum Ltd are together conducting the due diligence and would decide whether to bid after recommendations by its consulting firm Barclays PLC ," said one of the sources, speaking on the condition of anonymity.
"If OGDCL decides to bid, then its preference will be to do it with PPL. The bid has to be submitted by Dec. 6."
OGDCL already has some stakes in BP's Pakistan assets . OGDCL declined to comment and officials at PPL , the country's second-largest listed firm by market value, were not immediately available.
A BP spokeswoman declined to elaborate, saying that the transaction is expected to be completed by the end of the year. "The process is underway and when something happens we will announce it. That's all actually we are going to share," she said. BP's upstream assets and related operations, which it plans to divest, include nine producing and exploration onshore blocks and four offshore exploration blocks in the Arabian Sea, the sources said.
They contribute about 14 percent of Pakistan's total oil production and 6 percent of its domestic gas production.
UBS analysts estimated the worth of BP's fields in Pakistan at $690 million in a research note in July.
The Times newspaper in London reported last month that UK-based explorer Premier Oil may also be mulling a $500 million bid for BP's Pakistan gas production business.
The Pakistani sources declined to comment on the value of any bid.
"OGDCL will have two options - to bid, or do nothing and wait for the BP offer to match the bids in concessions where it has pre-emptive rights," the second source said. The decision on the bid is likely to be made next week, he said.
BP's main assets are in Badin in the southern Sindh province, comprising four concessions - Badin- I , Badin- II , Badin- II R and Badin- III , the sources said.
Of the four concessions, OGDCL has pre-emptive rights in all but Badin- I block which, the sources said, has the "biggest value".
"In case OGDCL doesn't bid, it is expecting that BP will give it the rights to match bids in Badin- I as well," the second source said.
In case it decides to bid, and wins, OGDCL will not seek direct involvement and will operate the acquired assets through a company, jointly owned by it and PPL, the first source said.
"The thinking is to set up a 'special purpose company' and transfer all of BP's employees there, as they can handle the sophisticated technology being used there," he said. (Editing by Michael Georgy, Chris Allbritton and Muralikumar Anantharaman) (E-mail: augustine.anthony@thomsonreuters.com; Reuters Messaging: augustine.anthony@thomsonreuters.com; Islamabad newsroom: +92 51 281 0017)) (If you have a query or comment about this story, send an e-mail to news.feedback.asia@thomsonreuters.com)