HAVANA, March 23 (Xinhua) -- An ambitious cooperation project is underway to transform Santiago de Cuba's port into a modern multipurpose terminal with the involvement of a Chinese company, said a senior Chinese diplomat here Thursday.

"With the joint work and efforts of both sides, the project will be a success," Chen Xi, Chinese ambassador to Cuba told local press when visiting the construction site of the port, which is located some 860 km southeast of the Cuban capital of Havana.

With a loan of 120 million U.S. dollars from China, the two countries are jointly building Cuba's second largest port on the easternmost tip of the Caribbean island.

China Communications Construction Company Limited (CCCC) is in charge of the port's rehabilitation and modernization project, which was launched in 2015 and is currently employing about 200 Chinese and Cuban workers.

"For the Chinese government and the companies involved, this is a very important project," said Chen.

When completed, the terminal will have a 232-meter-long pier, two warehouses, three multipurpose cranes and a waste treatment plant, which can load and unload some 565,000 tons of merchandise a year.