China Three Gorges to buy Duke Energy's Brazilian business for $1.2b

Duke Energy Corp has agreed to sell its Brazilian business to China Three Gorges Corp for $1.2 billion, the MarketWatch reported on Monday.

Proceeds from the sales will be used to repay debt, the company said. Duke Energy's long-term debt, including items, was about $39.93 billion as of June 30.

"This is another important step forward in driving our strategy to focus on our core domestic regulated business, and it builds on our recent acquisition of Piedmont Natural Gas," Lynn Good, chief executive of Duke Energy said in a statement.

The deal is expected to close in two to four months, the financial news website said.

Duke Energy, the second-largest US utility owner by market value, said in February it was looking to sell its international assets to drive more stable earnings and cash flow growth from the United States.

Earlier media reported that Duke Energy has invited Canada-based Brookfield Asset Management, French public utility company Engie SA and China Three Gorges Corp to submit binding bids for its Latin American power assets.

Shares of Duke Energy have risen 7 percent so far this year, while the S&P 500 index up 5 percent during the same period.