(Source: CGTN)

Saudi Arabia is the world's largest exporter of oil, so energy will be at the forefront of talks during the Saudi king's visit to Beijing. Chinese President Xi Jinping attended the ground-breaking ceremony for the Yasref refinery in Saudi Arabia early last year. 

Located in Yanbu Industrial City on the west coast of Saudi Arabia, this world class refinery can process about 400,000 barrels per day.

Opened in January of last year, the Yanbu Aramco Sinopec Refining Company -- or YASREF -- is a joint venture between Saudi Aramco and China Sinopec, with the Saudi company retaining the majority share.

"Yasref has gone through many challenges, in my opinion one of the key factors that we can overcame these challenges is the harmony of adaptation between the two companies, Saudi Aramco and Sinopec," said Khalid Quliti, Yasref I.T. manaer.

"This harmony enabled the success, along with dedication, cooperation, and the teamwork between the two partners. What makes a difference for me, is to work with multi-disciplines and multi-nationals, especially Chinese. It was a successful story."

Several contracts were awarded to international and domestic engineering, procurement and construction companies to build the refinery.

The site and fabrication yard will accommodate a peak work force of 30,000 during the construction phase.

The integrity of the project has built up much trust and friendship between Chinese and the local staff.

"Three words for Mr. Zhou, I would say he is an honorable man, honor. Respect, he shows respect to everything, especially when he is with us, you will never hear him speak about differences between the cultures. And intelligence, he is so smart that I learn from him a lot," said Faisal Solami, Yasref Chief Accountant.

Experts believe this project is an excellent opportunity for Saudi Arabia to address the global demand for energy, while attracting foreign investment to expand its economy.

But for now, the production line offers 13-hundred full-time jobs and supports approximately 5,000 indirect jobs in the kingdom.