The investment council of the Governor of the Nizhny Novgorod region approved the application to carry out development works for the construction of the a stadium for 45,000 spectators for the FIFA World Cup in 2018.
Deputy governor of the region, Dmitry Svatkovsky, said that the design of the facility will take 1.5 years. "Today we have received instructions from the Organizing Committee about the preparations of all legal acts, as well as about the provision of land for the construction of the stadium," said Svatkovsky.
According to him, the beginning of projecting work is scheduled for the third and fourth quarter of this year. The construction of the stadium will start in 2014."It is planned that a football stadium will be put in operation in 2017 to hold test matches prior to the championship," the official said.
"In our opinion, the stadium will fit the urban planning policy of the city. The area will look completely different, and we hope that in the coming years it will be one of the most beautiful places in our country" - said Svatkovsky. He also added that the stadium would become one of the best not only in Europe but in the whole world.
In turn, Deputy Minister of Sport and Youth Policy of the Nizhny Novgorod region, Alexey Moskvin, said that the estimated cost of the construction of the facility would make up from 8 to10 billion rubles.
According to Moskvin, the technical possibilities of the future stadium are being analyzed. "For example, you can build a stadium with a retractable roof, given the climate conditions in Nizhny Novgorod. The construction will make it possible to carry out various sports activities around the clock," he said.
The stadium will be used as a facility for holding exhibitions. According to the press service of the Government of the Nizhny Novgorod region, the construction of the stadium will create about 120 new jobs with average monthly salaries of about 50,000 rubles ($1,700), Business Quarter news agency said.