VENTURE CAPITAL POST

The following bids, mergers, acquisitions and disposals involving European, U.S. and Asian companies were reported by 1000 GMT on Tuesday:

 ** Oil and Natural Gas Corp, India's biggest state-owned energy company, is considering bidding for part of ConocoPhillips Canadian oil sands holdings worth around $5 billion, a source with direct knowledge of the situation told Reuters on Tuesday.

** Abu Dhabi's rapidly growing Etihad Airways has bought a 4 percent stake in Virgin Australia, its fourth overseas deal since December as the airline tries to compete with Gulf rivals. Etihad said it had acquired the stake for $35.6 million via market purchases over the past few weeks.

** Hutchison Whampoa of Hong Kong agreed to acquire a 75 percent stake in Scailex, the parent of Israeli mobile phone operator Partner Communications, for $125 million in cash, Scailex said on Tuesday.

** Italian insurer Unipol has agreed to sell a stake in top investment bank Mediobanca that it will hold after its planned merger with peer Fondiaria-SAI, a document obtained by Reuters on Tuesday said.

** The world's top gas producer, Gazprom, has no plans to buy BP's stake in Anglo-Russian venture TNK-BP as of now, a company executive said.

This article is copyrighted by Reuters