11th February 2009 - China to build Makkah rail system (BBC)

Saudi Arabia has appointed the China Railway Construction and French company .to build a high-speed rail link between the Holy Cities of Makkah and Madinah, at a cost of some 1.8 billion dollars. The train will cut the car journey time of five hours to half an hour. "China is becoming a key contractor on infrastructure projects in the oil-rich kingdom."