E.ON, VNG may sell gas grid EVG Thueringen - sources

FRANKFURT, Feb 5 (Reuters) - German utility E.ON EONGn.DE and gas firm VNG AG Href="NewsSearch">VNG.UL are considering selling their jointly owned regional gas grid EVG Thueringen in an auction that could fetch 300-400 million euros ($406-540 million), two people familiar with the matter said.

The sale of EVG, which operates a 1,200 kilometre gas grid in the German states of Thuringia and Saxony, could be launched this month or next, one of the people told Reuters.

E.ON and VNG - which is part-owned by EWE AG Href="NewsSearch">LANDWE.UL , Russia's Gazprom GAZP.MM and BASF's oil and gas arm Wintershall - both declined to comment.

($1 = 0.7402 euros)

(Reporting by Christoph Steitz and Arno Schuetze; Editing by Maria Sheahan)

((christoph.steitz@thomsonreuters.com)(+49 69 7565 1269)(Reuters Messaging: christoph.steitz.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))

Keywords: GERMANY E.ON/GRID