WSP Holdings Ltd, a Chinese supplier of steel products to oil companies, may raise as much as US$287.5 million from a New York Stock Exchange initial public offering, it said in a US regulatory filing.

The firm, based in Wuxi, Jiangsu Province, is raising capital to fund expansion in Canada, the United States, and the Middle East, as well as increase output in China, make acquisitions and repay debt, it said in the filing. It didn't specify the number of shares to be sold or the pricing.

China's three largest oil and gas producers increased their capital expenditure 22 percent annually between 2002 and 2006 to expand exploration, drilling and refining to meet demand for energy in the world's fastest-growing major economy, according to the document.

WSP makes seamless casing, tubing and drill pipes for oil and gas exploration. It was the third-largest supplier of such products to China National Petroleum Corp, the nation's biggest oil and gas producer, last year, the filing said.