(Yahoo, Dec 25, 2006) China National Petroleum Corp. (CNPC) is in talks to buy a "precious and rare" parcel of land in Shanghai's budding financial district, Lujiazui, for commercial development, the Shanghai Securities News said on Monday.

Beijing Huayou Property Development Co. Ltd., the property arm of the country's largest oil and gas producer, is seeking to buy the land -- with an estimated area of 115,000 square metres (1.2 million sq ft) -- from Lujiazui Group, the newspaper said, citing unnamed sources.

"Energy giant CNPC is aspiring to enter the Shanghai real estate market... it is zeroing in on a precious and rare piece land at the Lujiazui financial and trade zone in Shanghai's Pudong," the report said.

A CNPC spokesman said he was not aware of Huayou's plan. Officials at Lujiazui, the parent of property developer Lujiazui Finance and Trade Zone Development Co. Ltd. , were not available for comment.

If an agreement is reached, it would become Huayou's first residential property investment in Shanghai, the report said.

"Huayou has strong financial power to independently develop and build large and medium-scale real estate projects," China Huayou Group Corp., direct parent of Huayou property, said on its Web site. Its current real estate projects are mainly in central and western China, it says.

Huayou plans to turn the Lujiazui land into a commercial complex including residential properties, office buildings and shops, the official newspaper said.

Source:Yahoo