Deals of the Day-Mergers and acquisitions

Sept 11 (Reuters) - The following bids, mergers, acquisitions and disposals were reported by 1930 GMT on Thursday:

** Paramount Skydance PSKY.O is preparing a majority cash bid for Warner Bros Discovery WBD.O that is backed by the Ellison family, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday, citing people familiar with the situation. nL3N3UY17C

** Artemis, the Pinault family's holding that controls Gucci-owner Kering, will not sell its 29% stake in sports brand Puma at the current market value and is not engaged in talks over a deal, a source close to the firm told Reuters on Thursday. nL6N3UY0R3

** Czech generic drugmaker Zentiva 1SKF401E.BV said that private equity group Advent International had agreed to sell the company to rival GTCR for an undisclosed value. The Financial Times had first reported undefined the deal on Wednesday, saying it was worth 4.1 billion euros ($4.80 billion). nL3N3UY0TD

** U.S. power equipment maker GE Vernova GEV.N said on Thursday it agreed to sell Proficy, its industrial software business, to asset management firm TPG for $600 million as part of cost-cutting measures. nL3N3UY0T8

** Convenience store operator RaceTrac agreed to buy sandwich chain Potbelly Corp PBPB.O for approximately $566 million on Wednesday, in a rare move for a convenience store operator to buy out a restaurant brand. nL6N3UX0QX

** Barrick Mining ABX.TO said on Wednesday it agreed to sell its Hemlo gold mine in Canada to Carcetti Capital for up to $1.09 billion. nL3N3UX1R4

** Australia's second-largest gas producer Santos STO.AX said on Thursday it has signed an agreement with explosives manufacturer Orica ORI.AX to negotiate a potential domestic gas supply deal from its Narrabri Gas Project in New South Wales. nL3N3UX1QH

** French energy infrastructure company Technip Energies TE.PA said on Thursday it had agreed to buy U.S.-based chemicals group Ecovyst's ECVT.N Advanced Materials & Catalysts business for $556 million. nL2N3UY04N

** Spanish power utility Iberdrola IBE.MC has bought a 30.29% stake in its Brazilian business Neoenergia NEOE3.SA from Brazil's Previ pension fund for 11.95 billion reais ($2.21 billion), it said. nL2N3UY067

** Global investment firms Carlyle Group and EQT, alongside regional players HongShan Capital Group and Boyu Capital, are preparing final offers for a controlling stake in Starbucks' China operations, said five people with knowledge of the matter. nL2N3UY08C

** Lufthansa LHAG.DE is working with Italy's economy ministry to increase its stake in state airline ITA Airways to 90% by June 2026, the Corriere della Sera newspaper reported, citing two sources familiar with the discussions. nL6N3UY0FY