China Oil & Gas Group Ltd said it may acquire a natural gas station project in eastern Nanjing City, near Shanghai, to capture potential market growth for the green fuel.

The Hong Kong-listed company said it was in talks with an independent third party in relation to a possible acquisition of interests in a natural-gas project in Nanjing, Jiangsu Province.

The company, incorporated in Bermuda, is principally engaged in investment in Internet, information technology and natural gas business. It was called Nippon Asia Investments Holdings Ltd before changing its name in October to better reflect business.

Last month, the company has canceled a HK$196 million (US$25 million) deal to buy natural gas operations from Vast China Group Ltd in Maanshan in Anhui Province, as company auditors said they needed more time to account financial details for the latter for the past years.

China Oil is not the only smaller company that wants a share in China's growing natural gas market; despite the factor the nation's three state-owned companies control China's energy reserve exploration and production.

Xinao Gas Holdings Ltd, China's largest privately owned piped-gas distributor and also listed in Hong Kong, is looking for international partners to build several liquefied natural gas terminals on the mainland to import the super cooled fuel.
The government wants gas use to make up eight percent of energy supply by 2010 from some three percent now, against the backdrop of increasing pollution.

Source:佚名