Simmons & Simmons and Allen & Overy (A&O) have taken lead roles on ONGC Videsh's $1bn (£622m) acquisition of stakes in oil fields in Azerbaijan from New York's Hess Corporation.

The Simmons team was led by Hong Kong partners Tom Deegan and Vivien Yang, who advised the India-based energy company on its acquisition of a 2.72% share in the Azeri, Chirag and Guneshli (ACG) fields and a 2.36% interest in the associated Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline.

A&O represented Hess on the sale, with London corporate partner John Geraghty leading the magic circle firm's team.

ONGC Videsh is the international arm of India's Oil & Natural Gas Corporation, one of the largest oil and gas exploration and production companies in Asia.

The group has a presence in 30 exploration and production projects in 15 countries, and holds a stake in Kazakhstan's Satpayev Exploration Block.

The company has in the past been advised by Linklaters, which acted on its proposed £1.4bn takeover of Russian oil exploration giant Imperial Energy in 2008, as well as its £324m acquisition of Syrian oil assets from Petro-Canada in 2006.

Hess's general counsel is White & Case's former global co-head of M&A Tim Goodell, who joined the company in 2008.

The deal is subject to relevant government and regulatory approvals, and is expected to close by the first quarter of 2013.