MILAN, May 27 (Reuters) - State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR), global commodity trader Gunvor and Abu Dhabi-based Bin Butti Group are expected to submit binding offers for Italian oil refiner Italiana Petroli $(IP)$ next week, two sources close to the deal said on Tuesday.

IP, also known as API Group, is being advised by UniCredit CRDI.MI on the potential sale, the sources said. IP is owned by Italy's wealthy Brachetti Peretti family and has a total refining capacity of around 200,000 barrels per day (bpd). It also owns a network of 4,600 fuel stations.

IP declined to comment. Gunvor, SOCAR and Bin Butti Group were not immediately available to comment.

Italian daily la Repubblica said on Tuesday, citing unnamed sources, that SOCAR is seen as the front runner for the acquisition and that IP is valued at between 2.3 billion euros and 2.5 billion euros ($2.61 billion-$2.84 billion).

SOCAR and Gunvor have been exploring possible bids for longer than Bin Butti, which joined the race for the Italian group only recently, the sources told Reuters.

Reuters reported last month that binding bids for IP were due by the end of May and mentioned SOCAR, Gunvor and Glencore GLEN.L as potential bidders.

($1 = 0.8797 euros)

(Reporting by Francesca Landini and Valentina Za, additional reporting by Nailia Bagirova and Federico Maccioni; writing by Gianluca Semeraro, editing by Susan Fenton)

((gianluca.semeraro@tr.com; +39 06 80 307 741;))