UPDATE 1-Oil sands developer UTS rejects latest Total offer

CALGARY, Alberta, April 16 (Reuters) - UTS Energy Corp (UTS.TO) formally rejected a sweetened C$830 million ($686 million) offer from French oil major Total SA (TOTF.PA) on Thursday, saying the bid was still too low and it was looking at other ways to boost its shares.

The Canadian oil sands developer said its board unanimously rejected the C$1.75 per share hostile offer that Total made on Monday, up from a C$1.30 bid in January.

It said the offer was still less than the value of its cash on hand and the money Petro-Canada (PCA.TO) and Teck Cominco (TCKb.TO), its partners in the planned Fort Hills oil sands project, must pony up to pay for its share of the project's initial construction costs.

The company said the bid also fails to give any value for UTS's other undeveloped oil sands properties, or rising oil prices.

"The revised bid in no way reflects improving industry fundamentals, remains lower than the sum of UTS's cash and remaining earn-in and attributes no value to our excellent and expanding suite of oil sands assets," Dennis Sharp, UTS's chairman, said in a release.

UTS said it is talking with other potential bidders and could also restructure its operations to fend off Total.

UTS shares were unchanged on Thursday on the Toronto Stock Exchange at C$1.83. ($1=$1.21 Canadian) (Reporting by Scott Haggett; editing by Rob Wilson)