体坛英语新闻：Russia to replace imported materials in preparation for 2018 FIFA World Cup

MOSCOW, April 13 (Xinhua) -- Russia will replace imported materials with domestic equivalents for construction projects of the 2018 FIFA World Cup, the government said Monday.

According to the order signed by Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, "it is necessary to modify the contracts on stadiums projects concerning the replacement of foreign-made equipment and materials with Russian equivalents."

The Sports Ministry, which has been acting as a governmental client in dealing with the construction of soccer stadiums, will be allowed to change the price, timing and volume of works without inviting new tenders in order to optimize the projects.

Earlier this month, the Sports Ministry announced it would cut over 400 million U. S. dollars of its spending of the World Cup, with 25 events to be canceled and 14 more downsized to save 27 billion rubles (over 475 million U.S. dollars) for the organizers.

Preparations for the tournament require implementation of about 300 infrastructure projects in 11 host cities. Besides, 20 more cities were involved in visitors' accommodation service program.