UPDATE 1-Abu Dhabi National Energy Co nears deal to sell some Canadian assets to Blue Sky -sources

(Adds details on assets, background)

By Shariq Khan

Aug 3 (Reuters) - Abu Dhabi National Energy Company is nearing a deal to sell some light oil and natural gas-producing assets in Alberta and British Columbia to privately owned Blue Sky Resources Ltd, three sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

Abu Dhabi National Energy Company, also called TAQA, has reached an agreement on terms of the sale to Blue Sky and the deal is now awaiting approval from the Alberta Energy Board, one of the sources said.

Reuters could not immediately learn the deal value or other terms.

The sources declined to be identified as the information is not public. They cautioned the Alberta regulator could reject the deal.

"If and when any deal is finalized and approved by the relevant authorities, we will make an announcement in line with regulatory requirements," TAQA told Reuters in an emailed response.

Blue Sky did not respond to a request for comment.

Several global oil majors have rushed to sell Canadian oil sands assets over the last four years over concerns ranging from high production costs and emissions to scarcity of capital.

If finalized, TAQA's sale of the assets would make it the second large international oil company to trim its holdings in Canada in recent months. Last week, Japanese state-backed oil producer Japan Petroleum Exploration Co (Japex) announced the sale of its Hangingstone oil sands project on Thursday.

A host of other Middle Eastern oil and gas companies, including Saudi Aramco, have also outlined plans to raise tens of billions of dollars through sales of stakes in energy assets.

The TAQA assets being sold had production of 9,359 barrels of oil equivalent per day as of September 2020, according to marketing materials seen by Reuters. The assets being sold span 547,467 net acres.

Based in Calgary, Alberta, Blue Sky Resources has been making acquisitions around the region since the start of this year. Backed by oil industry veteran Ilyas Chaudhary and his family, the company has completed at least two other acquisitions in the last six months.

Chaudhary previously led an Irvine, California-based oil producer, Saba Petroleum Co, from 1985 until 1998. He later headed Capco Energy Inc, an offshore U.S. Gulf Coast-focused oil driller.

Not much is publicly known about Blue Sky, a tightly held company, and its website says it is "being reconstructed."

In March, the company purchased oil producing assets in Alberta from Highwood Oil Company Ltd. It had earlier taken over bankrupt company Zargon Oil and Gas Ltd. (Reporting by Shariq Khan in Bengaluru Additional reporting by Saeed Azhar in Dubai Editing by Denny Thomas and Howard Goller)