New Delhi, Sep 19 (IANS) State-owned exploration major Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) Tuesday said it is looking at partnering national oil companies abroad to acquire hydrocarbon assets in countries like Kazakhstan and Cuba.

At the company's annual general meeting, chairman and managing director R.S. Sharma also announced a bonus issue for shareholders in the ratio of one share for every five held in the company.

"The board had proposed bonus issue in August and the annual general meeting has approved it today. The bonus shares will be issued in November," Sharma said.

The company top brass was also optimistic on winning several hydrocarbons in the latest round of exploration bids announced by the Indian petroleum ministry. "We are really hopeful of grabbing substantial blocks," he said.

The top ONGC official said the company would be getting the first consignment of 90,000 tonnes of crude oil from the Sakhalin oil field in Russia in the second week of November. "It will be processed at Mangamore Refinery," he added.

ONGC Videsh Ltd, the overseas investing arm of the state-run company, has a 20-percent stake in Sakhalin-I oil field.

The ONGC chairman said that the company was also looking at importing liquefied petroleum gas. "Gas is an emerging fuel of the decade and its derivatives have a huge business potential," Sharma said.