June 16 (Reuters) - Mitsubishi Corp ( MSBHF ) is in talks

to acquire the U.S. shale production and pipeline assets of

Aethon Energy Management for roughly $8 billion, a person

familiar with the matter said on Monday.

The deal, should it be struck, would give the Japanese

conglomerate a substantial natural gas operation adjacent to the

U.S. Gulf coast and the energy export facilities being developed

along it.

Talks between Mitsubishi ( MSBHF ) and Aethon are ongoing, said the

source, who cautioned that there was no guarantee a transaction

would be agreed and spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss

confidential deliberations.

While the assets are owned and operated by U.S.

energy-focused investment firm Aethon, fellow money managers

RedBird Capital Partners and Canada's Ontario Teachers' Pension

Plan also hold sizable stakes.

Aethon and RedBird declined comment. OTPP did not

immediately respond to a comment request. Mitsubishi ( MSBHF ) could not

be reached outside of normal business hours in Japan.

The upstream assets of Aethon, which primarily focus on the

Haynesville shale formation in Louisiana and East Texas,

constitute one of the largest privately held U.S. gas producers.

Reuters reported in November that Aethon was exploring

options for its operations, which also include more than 1,400

miles (2,250 km) of pipelines across the Haynesville basin and

Wyoming, where Aethon also has some production assets.

Bloomberg News earlier on Monday reported the talks between

Mitsubishi ( MSBHF ) and Aethon, citing people familiar with the matter.