(Adds Murray and Roberts, Performance Sports Group, PharMerica, Handelsbanken, Orange)
Aug 24 (Reuters) - The following bids, mergers, acquisitions and disposals were reported by 2000 GMT on Wednesday:
** The former chairman of Performance Sports Group Ltd , Graeme Roustan, told Reuters he has hired investment banks Jefferies Group LLC and Canaccord Genuity to explore a possible bid for the troubled maker of hockey gear.
** Pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca has agreed to sell its small molecule antibiotics business to Pfizer Inc in a deal that could be valued at more than $1.5 billion.
** Oil and gas producer PDC Energy Inc said it would buy two privately held companies for about $1.5 billion to add acreage in the Delaware Basin in Texas.
** French state-controlled utility EDF and the French government have agreed on a 400 million euro ($450 million) compensation package for the closure of EDF's Fessenheim nuclear plant, a source familiar with the situation said on Wednesday.
** Beijing Xinwei Technology Group has agreed to buy Israeli satellite operator Space Communication for $285 million, the companies said on Wednesday.
** Chinese private equity investor CDH Investments is selling up to $916 million of its shares in WH Group, the world's largest pork company, IFR reported on Wednesday, citing a deal marketing termsheet.
** PharMerica Corp, a U.S. pharmacy manager for long-term care facilities, is exploring strategic alternatives including a potential sale, according to people familiar with the matter.
** The partners of Emerging Sovereign Group LLC (ESG) have agreed to buy back the majority stake in the emerging markets-focused hedge fund manager that was acquired by Carlyle Group LP in 2011, Carlyle said on Wednesday.
** Japan's Recruit Holdings Co Ltd said on Wednesday its shareholders, including advertising agency Dentsu Inc, will sell up to 267 billion yen ($2.67 billion) worth of its shares in Japan and overseas to diversify its shareholder base.
** French telecoms operator Orange denied on Wednesday having reached a deal with Vivendi that would include taking stakes in the media giant's pay-TV Canal Plus and in Telecom Italia, following an online report by French magazine Challenges.
** Chinese state-backed firms are frontrunners to buy a $1.5 billion controlling stake in Pakistani utility K-Electric, sources said, as they bet the benefits of a Beijing-led economic corridor will trump the risks of investing in Pakistan.
** Glencore Plc has agreed to sell all the gold and a 30 percent stake in its Ernest Henry copper mine in Australia to Evolution Mining for A$880 million ($670 million), advancing the Swiss giant's effort to pay down debt.
** Australian retailer Metcash Ltd said it would buy the Home Timber & Hardware group, owned by Woolworths Ltd , for A$165 million ($125.48 million) in cash.
** Oil and gas giant Saudi Aramco <IPO-ARMO.SE> may reduce its stake in a proposed $5.5 billion refinery project in Indonesia, the country's energy minister said on Wednesday.
** Cia Energética de São Paulo SA said on Tuesday that a council overseeing privatizations has recommended the state of São Paulo sell a controlling stake in the Brazilian electricity generator.
** Brazilian steelmaker Cia Siderúrgica Nacional SA said in a securities filing on Tuesday that it had agreed to sell its Fortaleza, Brasil-based tinmaker, Cia Metalic do Nordeste SA, to Poland's Can-Pack SA for $98 million.
** Tesla Motors Chief Executive Elon Musk is buying $65 million of bonds from SolarCity Corp in the latest debt offering by the solar panel company that Tesla plans to acquire for $2.6 billion, according to a filing on Tuesday.
** South African engineering and construction group Murray and Roberts (M&R) said on Wednesday it was in talks to sell its infrastructure and building business as part of its drive to focus on projects for the global natural resources sector.
** Swedish bank Handelsbanken said on Wednesday it planned to sell its 29.4 million shares in its parent Industrivarden to institutional investors.
** India's Piramal Enterprises Ltd said it would partner Bain Capital to invest in distressed assets, becoming the latest entrant in the space as the nation's banks are on a drive to clean up $120 billion of sour debt. (Compiled by Rishika Sadam and Gayathree Ganesan in Bengaluru)