The Iraqi Oil Ministry welcomed a delegation from Kuwait to discuss ways in which the two countries could expand bilateral ties in the energy sector.

Iraqi Oil Minister Adil Abdel Mahdi met in Baghdad with Kuwaiti Ambassador to Baghdad Ghassan al-Zawawi.

"They discussed mutual relations between the two countries, especially in the oil sector," the Iraqi Oil Ministry said in a statement Tuesday. "[The Iraqi minister] praised the Kuwaiti role in supporting Iraq economically and politically, as well as the Kuwaiti companies contributing to developing the oil industry."

Kuwait Energy, an independent company, holds a 70 percent stake in the Block 9 area in Basra in southern Iraq. The company said it produced 2,000 barrels of oil per day during a production test and will continue to appraise its latest discovery through the end of the year.

Iraq's super-giant Rumaila sits near the shared border with Kuwait. Disputes over the field led to war between the two countries during the regime of Saddam Hussein.

BP and the China National Petroleum Corporation are working to increase production from the Rumaila oil field to a plateau level of 2.85 million barrels per day.