U.S. shale player Continental Resources said Monday it has signed a deal with a South Korean company to develop its gas assets in Oklahoma.

Continental, which has headquarters in Oklahoma City, announced it sold 49.9 percent of its stake in the Northwest Cana Woodford shale basin to South Korean conglomerate SK Group for roughly $360 million.

"We are excited to establish this joint venture with such an established and highly regarded major international energy company," Harold Hamm, Continental's chairman and chief executive officer, said in a statement.

Continental has a stake in 37 producing wells in the Cana Woodford shale.

The company said it plans to start drilling into the Oklahoma shale basin next month, with four rigs deployed through its partnership with SK Group by the end of the year.

Oil services company Baker Hughes in early October said shale basins in Oklahoma were among those witnessing the biggest gains in wells started during the third quarter.

Since 2007, Oklahoma has produced more than 1 trillion cubic feet of natural gas from shale, and production should increase with the emergence of the Cana Woodford play.