Exclusive - Petrobras hires JPMorgan for asset sales, sources say

By Guillermo Parra-Bernal and Mike Stone

SAO PAULO/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Petróleo Brasileiro SA (PETR4.SA) has hired JPMorgan Chase & Co to manage $3 billion in planned asset sales for this year, as fallout from a corruption scandal shuts access to financing for Brazil's state-controlled oil producer, two sources with direct knowledge of the situation said on Wednesday.

JPMorgan (JPM.N) will be tasked with luring the biggest number of bidders possible for the assets and then structuring their sale, said a first source, who asked for anonymity since the process is private. According to a second source, meetings are being scheduled in the coming weeks to further look at deal opportunities.

Both Petrobras, as the company is commonly known, and JPMorgan declined to comment.

(Additional reporting by Jeb Blount in Rio de Janeiro; Editing by Diane Craft)