**#6 M&A WATCH- SDX in talks with BP to acquire assets in Egypt: SDX Energy announced on Thursday that it was in open talks with BP to acquire “a significant package of [its] assets in Egypt.” It’s not immediately clear which assets SDX hopes to acquire, but the company said in a press release (pdf) that the transaction would take the form of a reverse takeover, allowing SDX entry to the London Stock Exchange’s main market. SDX is currently listed on junior London market AIM, but trading on its shares has been suspended until negotiations wrap-up.Trading on the company’s shares on the Canadian TSX Venture Exchange has also been suspended until further notice.

Background: We had reported in March that BP was already meeting with prospective buyers for its stake in its 50-year-old JV with the EGPC, the Gulf of Suez Oil Company (GUPCO), as part of a plan to sell USD 2-3 bn’s worth of maturing assets this year in an effort to shore up finances. Sources had then valued the GUPCO transaction at EGP 500 mn but others had said that BP was hoping to raise as much as USD 1 bn from the sale.