BEIJING - CHINA National Offshore Oil Corp., the country's largest offshore oil and gas producer, signed four oil cooperation agreements on Friday with Taiwan's CPC Corp., state media reported.

The deals were signed by CNOOC Chairman and CEO Fu Chengyu and CPC Chairman Wenent Pan, according to the official Xinhua News Agency.

The agreements included a letter of intent for closer cooperation, a revised contract on joint exploration in the Tainan Basin off the Taiwan Strait and the Chaozhou Shantou Basin off the southern Guangdong coast, a joint study on the Wuqiuyu Basin, and a transfer of a 30 per cent stake of CNOOC's onshore Block 9 in Kenya to CPC.

Mr Fu said CNOOC has established good rapport with CPC Corp. since 1994 when the two companies started cooperation.

CPC Corp., based in Taipei, is a government-owned oil refiner.

The deal appeared to be the latest sign of warming relations between the longtime rivals.

Taiwan and China split amid civil war in 1949. The mainland continues to claim the self-governing island as part of its territory and has threatened to attack if it moves to formalise its de facto independence.

Tensions have abated significantly since the inauguration of Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou in May. In contrast to his pro-independence predecessor, Ma wants to tighten economic relations with China as a way of boosting Taiwan's economy.

On Dec 15, the two sides initiated daily air and direct maritime links after a break of nearly 60 years.

Direct links across the 160-kilometre- wide Taiwan Strait is expected to generate new business for the two sides, which have annual bilateral trade at about US$100 billion (S$144.7 billion). -- AP