CNOOC Ltd., the Hong Kong listed unit of China National Offshore Oil Corp, and Taiwan’s CPC Corporation agreed on Friday to revive and expand their cooperation, in the latest sign that the political thaw in the Taiwan Strait is bringing benefits for the corporate sector.

While the two state-owned companies have had projects for joint exploration and prospecting in waters around Taiwan since 1996, the cooperation has long been dormant as relations between the two governments grew increasingly tense since 2003.