MOSCOW — Russian news agencies say the budget for the state company overseeing much of the construction work for the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi will be cut by two-thirds this year.

The reports cite comments by regional development minister Viktor Basargin in a meeting Tuesday with Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's council on sports.

This year's budget for the Olympstroi company originally was set at nearly 50 billion rubles (about $1.4 billion), but now will be cut by 33 billion ($916 million), Basargin was quoted as saying Tuesday. He said the decision was made in coordination with the finance ministry after "we studied the real situation."

Russia's economy has suffered hugely over the past year, particularly from nose-diving oil prices.