St. Petersburg, Feb 8 (IANS) The construction committee for one of the world's most expensive building projects -- the Zenit Arena -- announced a budget of $230 million for 2014.
Besides financing ongoing structural work, the 2014 funds will also allow the addition of a roof and facade, the committee's head Mikhail Demidenko said Friday. A total of 25,000 cubic meters of concrete will be laid in 2014 by a 1400-strong construction force who will also be responsible for the building of the stadium's 21,000-ton roof, reports Xinhua.
Under construction since 2007, the Zenit Arena is scheduled to play a major role in Russia's hosting the 2018 FIFA World Cup and to become the new home of local football club Zenit St. Petersburg.
After a series of corruption and mismanagement scandals led cost projections to spiral out of control, local government authorities signed a new construction contract worth $360 million with the Transstroy group in 2013.
The stadium is now due to be ready by December 2015, although head of the 2018 World Cup organising committee Alexey Sorokin Thursday announced May 2016 as the absolute final deadline for completion of the project.
Total costs are now predicted to remain below the $1 billion mark, down from estimates of up to $1.5 billion last year.
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