* Q3 revenue up 63.8 pct, output up 48.8 pct
* Ups full-year production target to 319-329 mln boe
* Average selling price up 9.3 pct to $74.15
* Shares end up 0.4 pct before results (Adds details, CFO quotes)
By Sui-Lee Wee
HONG KONG, Oct 28 (Reuters) - China's top offshore oil and gas producer CNOOC Ltd said it expects to exceed its annual production target after it produced 48.8 percent more oil and gas in the third quarter, thanks to higher contributions from new and existing fields.
Like its global peers including Exxon Mobil and Chevron, CNOOC has benefited from a 12 percent increase in crude oil prices in the third quarter from the same period a year ago.
CNOOC now expects to generate 319-329 million barrels of oil equivalent (boe) in 2010, up from its initial forecast of 275-290 million boe set early this year, the firm said in a statement to the Hong Kong stock exchange.
CNOOC has had a traditional stronghold in offshore China, but its ageing fields has sparked concerns over its production growth, putting more pressure on the firm to secure more outbound deals.
CNOOC recently agreed a $1.1 billion deal with Chesapeake Energy Corp for a U.S. shale oil and gas field and is pursuing a $5 billion bid with Ghana National Petroleum Corp for major fields in the West African state..
CNOOC's Chief Financial Officer Zhong Hua declined to comment about the firm's possible bid for Kosmos Energy LLC's assets in Ghana on a conference call with reporters after its results.
Zhong said CNOOC has resumed production at its oil and gas facilities in the eastern part of the South China Sea, which were shut down last week due to the threat of Typhoon Megi..
Unlike peers PetroChina and Sinopec Corp, CNOOC makes almost all of its profit from exploration and production and does not have to sell fuel at state-capped prices, sometimes below costs.
Total revenue rose 63.8 percent to 38.91 billion yuan ($5.83 billion) for the July-September quarter due to higher crude prices, CNOOC said in a statement on Thursday.
CNOOC's overall oil and gas output rose to 88.7 million barrels of oil equivalent during the period.
The company's average oil selling price was 9.3 percent higher at $74.15 per barrel in the quarter.
CNOOC's peer PetroChina, the world's second-most valuable oil and gas producer, posted its best quarterly earnings in two years on Wednesday, boosted by higher prices and putting it on track to beat full-year expectations..
Shares in CNOOC rose 0.4 percent on Thursday ahead of the results, compared to a 0.2 percent rise on the benchmark index. CNOOC has risen about 23 percent so far this year, versus PetroChina, which has advanced 2 percent and Sinopec, which has gained around 7 percent.
(Editing by Lincoln Feast)