Editor: zhenglimin 丨Xinhua 01-21-2016
RIYADH, Jan. 20 (Xinhua) -- After attending the launch ceremony of
the Yasref oil refinery, China's largest investment project in Saudi
Arabia, President Xi Jinping on Wednesday wrapped up his visit to the
kingdom, which was lauded as "historic."
Xi's two-day state visit has witnessed an upgrade of China-Saudi
Arabia relations and stepped up energy cooperation between the two
countries.
STEPPING UP ENERGY COOPERATION
Accompanied by Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, the Chinese
president attended the ceremony at the King Abdullah Petroleum Studies
and Research Center in Riyadh to remotely inaugurate the operation of
the Yasref oil refinery, a joint venture between Saudi Aramco and
China's Sinopec.
Xi said that energy cooperation between the two countries has brought tangible benefits to both peoples.
The launch of the refinery, he said, conforms to not only the Saudi
national development strategy, but also China's strategy of carrying out
cooperation with countries in the regions outlined in the
China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative, a vision Xi put forward in 2013
to boost interconnectivity and common development along the ancient
land and maritime Silk Roads.
As a full-conversion refinery covering 5.2 million square meters in
the industrial city of Yanbu on the west coast of Saudi Arabia, Yasref
plays a fundamental role in the future of Yanbu industries, the company
said.
It is the first overseas refinery Sinopec has built. The two
companies signed the agreement in early 2012 with a total investment of
nearly 10 billion U.S. dollars. Aramco holds 62.5 percent of the stake
while Sinopec holds 37.5 percent.
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