Losses suffered by China Railway Construction Corporation on a new Saudi Arabian railway are temporary, company president Zhao Guangfa has said.

Zhao's comments come nearly two weeks after the Beijing-based company said it expected to lose about 4.15 billion yuan ($623.3 million) on the A1-Mashaaer Al-Mugadassah metro light rail for Muslim pilgrims, exceeding the company's estimate, according to a report in our sister newspaper Gulf Daily News.

'Ultimately we will see no big losses on this project,' Zhao said on the sidelines of a forum in Beijing.

'The losses so far are temporary ... not every project will make money at the very beginning,' he said, adding that the project owner has agreed to talk with China Railway about possible payments and compensation.

Zhao said the Saudi project would not change the company's plan or strategies in venturing abroad.