Nexen's CEO says company is not for sale

CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) - Canadian oil and gas company Nexen Inc is not for sale and plans to use its cash to look for potential acquisitions arising from the current financial crisis, the company's chief executive said on Wednesday.

CEO Charlie Fischer, responding to a Financial Times report that the company may be a target for larger rivals, said Nexen is well-financed and will look for opportunities to expand.

"We are not for sale," Fischer said on a conference call.

The report said Total SA , Royal Dutch Shell and BP Plc. could be interested in acquiring Nexen for its holdings in Canada's oil sands, as well as its properties in the Gulf of Mexico, the British North Sea, Yemen and elsewhere. State-owned China National Petroleum Corp was also a potential bidder, according to the article.

However Nexen, whose shares have dropped by more than half since the end of August, said it is more likely to be a buyer than a seller, and said the article was "filled with speculation".

"We have not been approached by anybody," Fischer said. "In this environment my guess is everybody is looking over their shoulder because valuations have changed so dramatically ... We'll be looking for opportunities."

Shares in Nexen, which on Wednesday reported its third-quarter profit more than doubled on high oil prices, rose $2.85 to $19.10 midmorning on Wednesday on the Toronto Stock Exchange.