Saudi Arabia and Kuwait are close to restoring oil output from the neutral zone, Bloomberg reported citing unnamed sources.

The two countries reportedly made significant progress in negotiations and drafted documents in preparation for further talks. After technical details are agreed, production will resume from the fields of Khafji and Wafra.

However, it is not clear yet if the neutral zone will produce oil immediately. It is expected that the two countries can pump about 500,000 barrels per day (b/d) from the zone, almost as much as Ecuador’s entire production.

Saudi Arabia’s Energy Minister Khalid Al-Falih previously expected an agreement with Kuwait on resuming oil production from the neutral zone during 2019.

The Saudi–Kuwaiti Neutral Zone is an area of 5,770 square kilometers (km2) between the borders of Saudi Arabia and Kuwait that was left undefined when the border was established.