(Adds HNA Group, Wolong Electric, Abbey Life, Empire Today)
June 3 (Reuters) - The following bids, mergers, acquisitions and disposals were reported by 2030 GMT on Friday:
** Electricity producer Talen Energy Corp TLN.N said private equity firm Riverstone Holdings LLC would buy the remaining stake in the company it did not already own for about $1.8 billion, amid a string of deals in the U.S. power industry. Commercial real estate manager NorthStar Asset Management Group Inc NSAM.N , REIT NorthStar Realty Finance Corp NRF.N and private equity firm Colony Capital Inc CLNY.N agreed to an all-stock merger, creating a combined company with $58 billion of assets under management. SoftBank Group Corp 9984.T said on Friday it was selling a further $1.1 billion of its shares in Alibaba (NYSE:BABA) Group Holding Ltd BABA.N , bringing the total it has sold in the Chinese e-commerce company to $10 billion. China's HNA Group has expressed interest in acquiring Avianca Holdings SA AVT_p.CN and Avianca Brasil, the South American airlines controlled by Bolivian-born entrepreneur Germán Efromovich's Synergy Group, people familiar with the matter said. China Gezhouba Group Co 600068.SS is considering buying infrastructure assets in Brazil, through concessions, partnerships or construction projects, a senior executive said on Friday. China's Wolong Electric 600580.SS , Japan's Nidec 6594.T and other Asian firms are seen as possible buyers of U.S. automation equipment maker Emerson Electric's EMR.R alternator unit Leroy Somer, two sources with knowledge of the situation told Reuters. Germany denied interfering in Chinese home appliance maker Midea's 000333.SZ 4.5 billion euro ($5 billion) bid for industrial robot maker Kuka KU2G.DE on Friday, saying it was not organizing a rival offer. Private equity firm Astorg has put French calcium aluminates company Kerneos up for sale in a move which could value the firm at around 1 billion euros ($1.1 billion), three sources familiar with the matter said on Friday. Deutsche Bank 's DBKGn.DE sale of its British insurer Abbey Life Assurance Co is facing delays as bidders struggle to decide on a valuation due to an investigation by Britain's financial watchdog into the firm, sources familiar with the matter said. State Grid Corp of China's (SGCC) offshore investment unit has been selected as the favorable bidder to buy a 14 percent stake in Belgium gas and power distribution firm Eandis Assets EANDI.UL , SGCC said in a statement on Thursday. French oil and gas producer Total TOTF.PA has begun preparations for the sale of its specialty chemicals and equipment division Atotech, which may be valued at about 3 billion euros ($3.4 billion), sources said. ICAP Plc IAP.L said it won a contract to provide technology for China's main fixed income and foreign exchange trading system, giving the British broker a major break in the world's second-largest economy. The deal, valued at $65 million over a three-year period, would see ICAP expanding into China just as the country is becoming more integrated into global financial markets. Ningbo Joyson Electronic Corp 600699.SS , a major Chinese auto supplier, said it was looking at investing in Japan's Takata Corp 7312.T , which has been searching for financial backers to help it face mounting recall costs over potentially deadly air bags. Indonesia's largest telecommunication operator, PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia Tbk (Telkom) TLKM.JK , dropped the deal to buy Guam telecom firm AP Teleguam Holdings Inc as there was no certainty on the approval process by the U.S. regulator, a Telkom director told Reuters. French tycoon Vincent Bollore said in a newspaper interview published on Friday that media group Vivendi VIV.PA did not need to make any big acquisitions as it had all the assets it needed to challenge the industry's dominant players. China's Anbang Insurance Group Co Ltd ANBANG.UL will try for a second time to buy U.S. life insurer Fidelity & Guaranty Life FGL.N after the Chinese firm put on hold its acquisition plan earlier this week, the South China Morning Post reported on Friday. Canada's Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc ATDb.TO and Japan's Seven & i Holdings Co Ltd 3382.T have submitted indicative offers to acquire U.S. convenience store retailer CST Brands Inc CST.N , people familiar with the matter said on Thursday. Empire Today LLC, the privately held U.S. carpet, hard-floor and window treatment retailer known for its catchy, digit-bearing advertising jingle, is up for sale, according to people familiar with the matter. Shareholders of Australian ports and rail freight giant Asciano Ltd AIO.AX voted for a A$9.1 billion ($6.6 billion) buyout by a global consortium led by Canada's Brookfield Asset Management Inc BAMa.TO , leaving the company's future in the hands of regulators. United Continental Holdings Inc UAL.N and Delta Air Lines Inc (NYSE:DAL) DAL.N are among the possible bidders for Colombia's Avianca Holdings SA AVT_p.CN , the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter. British private equity firm Equistone Partners is buying marine navigation service ChartCo from fellow fund ECI for 55 million pounds ($79.43 million), the companies said on Friday. Brazil's Restoque Comércio e Confecções de Roupas SA LLIS3.SA has began talks with rival Inbrands SA over a potential tieup, which could create a leading apparel retailer with 2.8 billion reais ($781 million) in annual combined revenue and around 730 stores. Brazilian renewable energy company Renova Energia SA RNEW11.SA , which is seeking fresh capital following a failed asset sale last year, could see a new partner joining its controlling bloc within three months, three sources with direct knowledge of the matter said on Thursday.