The China Investment Corp (CIC), the country's sovereign wealth fund, on Monday signed an agreement to pay GDF Suez 2.3 billion euros ($3.2 billion) in exchange for a 30-percent stake in the French company's exploration and production division.

CIC chairman Lou Jiwei signed the agreement Monday in Beijing with Gerard Mestrallet, chairman and chief executive officer of GDF Suez.

CIC also agreed to pay 600 million euros for a 10-percent stake in GDF Suez's Atlantic LNG liquefaction facility located in Trinidad and Tobago. The deal is expected to be finalized at the end of the year.

Gerard said that the partnership with CIC will provide opportunities for GDF Suez to boost its businesses.

On Monday, GDF Suez also signed an agreement to supply China's largest off-shore oil producer, the China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC), with a ship that can store and regasify liquid natural gas.

GDF Suez is the largest buyer of natural gas and importer of liquefied natural gas in Europe, while CIC is an investment arm established in 2007 as a wholly state-owned Chinese company that makes long-term global investments.

Source:china.org.cn