SYDNEY: ExxonMobil has called off the potential multibillion-dollar sale of its oil and gas assets in Australia's Bass Strait, the company's local affiliate said on Saturday. The decision by the US oil major comes just six weeks after the deadline for indicative bids for the portfolio set by adviser JPMorgan.

ExxonMobil decided to keep the producing assets it operates in the Gippsland Basin "after completing an extensive market evaluation," a spokesman for local affiliate Esso Australia told Reuters in an email.

"We believe Gippsland Basin and the Kipper unit are more valuable as part of our portfolio and we will continue to operate rather than divest," he said.

The move was first reported in the Australian Financial Review, which said the process had not yielded attractive offers.