UPDATE 1- Afren, Hunt make major oil find in Kurdistan

LONDON, April 17 (Reuters) - London-listed oil explorer Afren Plc said on Tuesday it and partner Hunt Oil had made a "significant" oil discovery in Kurdistan, adding to a string of discoveries that have attracted foreign oil companies to the semi-autonomous region of Iraq in recent years.

Afren said the find in the Ain Sifni exploration block, which is operated by Hunt Oil, suggested the results of the Simrit-2 well suggested the block had "the potential to be transformational for Afren".

Afren previously said on its website that Ain Sifni had prospective resources of 917 million barrels.

Kurdistan remains locked in a dispute over oil revenue sharing with Baghdad, which says the contracts signed by the Kurdish government are illegal. This has blocked exports of crude from the region, weighing on the value of assets there.