KKR shale

KKR may acquire about $400 million of shale as sets in Texas’s Eagle Ford formation from Hilcorp Energy Co., two people familiar with the deal said. The buyout giant and Hilcorp, a closely held exploration and pro duction company based in Houston, may partner to develop the south Texas formation, which has unconventional gas deposits.

Axa sale

Axa SA, Europe’s sec ond-biggest insurer, is in talks to sell most of its UK life insurance unit to Clive Cowdery’s Resolu tion Ltd. for about $4.1 billion, two people briefed on the talks said. The discussions are at an advanced stage and both companies are aiming to reach an agreement by the end of the month, said the people, who declined to be named because the talks are private.

Chevron leak

Chevron is probing the cause and size of an oil pipeline leak in the foot hills of Salt Lake City after shutting the line. Ini tial estimates said around 500 barrels seeped from the 10-inch line.

Cheaper gas

The average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline in the US fell about 11 cents to about $2.72 in the last three weeks, according to the latest Lundberg survey.