THE cost of staging the 2012 Olympics has gone up another �5m in just three months, according to latest estimates. It means cutting corners and only putting up what’s needed in the athletes’ village for the two-week Games
THE cost of staging the 2012 Olympics in East London has gone up another �5 million in just three months, according to latest estimates out today.
It means cutting corners and only putting up what's needed in the athletes' village for the two-week Games.
The anticipated final bill for the whole 'super project' is now put at �7.267 billion, the Olympic authority's quarterly Economic Report shows.
This is an increase of 0.1 per cent since the last quarterly report, but well within the �8.1bn margin available, the authority points out.
Around �130m savings have been achieved since February, or �600m since the budget was agreed in 2007.
"But we are not complacent," the Olympics Authority Chairman John Armitt insists. "There is still a lot of work ahead. The next 12 months is set to be our busiest yet, with 10,000 workers on the Olympic Park and Village sites."
Potential cost increases are forecast in transport and infrastructure for the Village and Stratford City developments, however.
The decision to build only what is needed in the athletes' village for the Games means there will be spare land for future residential development after 2012, which should claw back some of the costs.
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