French oil major Total SA will jointly head up a Franco-Iraqi business leaders' council, along with the Iraqi business leaders' union, the French prime minister's office said Thursday.

Medef, the French business lobby, will run the secretariat of the council on the French side, according to a common declaration by Prime Minister Francois Fillon and his Iraqi counterpart, Nouri Al-Maliki.

Fillon is in Iraq with a delegation of French business leaders including Total Chief Executive Christophe de Margerie. The visit is the latest step in France's energetic pursuit of business opportunities in the country.

Total is one of several international majors positioning themselves to help boost Iraq's oil output.

-By Adam Mitchell, Dow Jones Newswires, +33 1 40171756; adam.mitchell@dowjones.com