Saudi Arabia is seeking stronger cooperation with China on trade investments and energy flows rather than competing with the superpower, said Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman.
"We came to recognize the reality of today that China is taking, had taken a lead, will continue to take that lead.
We don't have to compete with China, we have to collaborate with China," he told CNBC's Dan Murphy during the Arab-China Business Conference on Sunday.
On why the OPEC kingpin has eyes on China, Abdulaziz said he believes that China's oil demand is still growing, and it is a pie that Saudi Arabia is keen on capturing.
In March, state-owned Saudi Aramco announced two major refinery deals, supplying 690,000 barrels a day of crude oil to Rongsheng Petrochemical and Zhejiang Petrochemical.
Persons:
Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, CNBC's Dan Murphy, Abdulaziz, Xi Jinping's
Organizations:
Energy, China Business Conference, Saudi Aramco, Petrochemical, Zhejiang Petrochemical
Locations:
Saudi Arabia, China, Saudi