President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela, the world's No. 5 oil exporter, arrived Thursday in fuel-hungry China to sign an energy deal and discuss strategic ties. Chavez was due to meet with President Hu Jintao and China's No. 2 leader, Wu Bangguo, later in the day. "We are working on projects, on housing, energy, oil, technological and agricultural agreements," Chavez said in comments shown on Venezuelan state television after his arrival in the Chinese capital. China and Venezuela are discussing the possible joint development of a Venezuelan oilfield amid Beijing's worldwide hunt for fuel to avert energy shortages in its booming economy. Chavez and Hu planned to sign a deal to build a plant in China to produce the industrial fuel Orimulsion, according to Venezuelan Foreign Minister Ali Rodriguez. In return, Venezuela is to receive Chinese technical assistance to boost agricultural output and to start a state-run telecommunications company. "China has entered a new phase with Mr. Hu Jintao's government (and) we, in Venezuela, have entered a new phase to strengthen ... the relationship between the Bolivarian Revolution and the Chinese Revolution," Chavez said. Venezuelans and the Chinese "agree on many things on the domestic level, such as grass roots development ... and on the international level, like the need for a multi-polar world," he said. Chavez's four-day China trip comes amid a flurry of efforts by the Venezuelan leader to build ties with Russia and Middle Eastern governments. Some observers say Chavez is trying to ensure markets for Venezuelan oil in the event of a fallout in relations with the United States, which is its No. 1 buyer but also a critic of the Chavez government.