The new state-of-the-art Polytan turf to be installed at BC Place Stadium in time for the FIFA Women’s World Cup in June will cost $1.327 million, the corporation that operates the stadium said Friday.

PavCo revealed the price tag when it announced that Centaur Products Inc. of Burnaby was the successful bidder to install the German-made synthetic turf.

PavCo, which was scheduled to replace the existing turf in 2016, will contribute $827,000, with the remaining $500,000 split between Canada Soccer and Rugby Canada.

The blade height of the new turf will be 60 millimetres, which meets the International Rugby Board standard for hosting the men’s World Rugby Sevens Series in March 2016 and is more than enough to meet the FIFA 2-Star standard for World Cup soccer.

The specific turf product is called Liga Turf RS+CoolPlus World Cup Edition 260 W ACS 90 Bionic Fibre Infill.

“We tried to purposely make it confusing,” cracked Jim Grozdanich, assistant general manager at Centaur.

“(All the terms) have meanings, but even the meanings are complex. They have to deal with stitch count and different things.”

He did say, however, that the darker of the two greens in the dual-tone product should allow the turf to “show way better” for television broadcasts and for fans at the venue.

While the existing turf, installed for $1.2 million in 2011, met the FIFA rating, women who played on the surface during 2012 Olympic qualifying complained about it. So, too, did the German national team during an exhibition game against Canada in 2014.

“If you’re negative toward artificial turf, it doesn’t matter what it is,” said Grozdanich, while noting that 17 members of the German women’s team train on a similar turf and that Bayern Munich and other top European clubs do so as well.

The problem at BC Place, he notes, is that it is a multi-use facility with the turf covered frequently for things like the monster truck show, the boat show and other trade expositions.

“That takes a hard toll on it. If it was a soccer-specific, open-to-the-air venue, it would be perfect every game.”

He said Centaur has been testing a new product to put between the turf and the tile covering when the venue is used for purposes other than soccer or football.

FIFA’s decision to use artificial turf at six venues in Canada this summer triggered a human rights complaint from a group of elite female players last year. It was subsequently dropped.

But when BC Place was awarded the rugby sevens series it was decided to expedite the turf, a process made possible by the contributions from Canada Soccer and Rugby Canada.

Grozdanich said installation of the new turf will begin May 17, a day after the Vancouver Whitecaps host the Seattle Sounders in a Major League Soccer match. The work is scheduled to be completed by May 29, a day before the Caps host Real Salt Lake.

World Cup action begins at BC Place with two games on June 8. The final will be played July 5.

Grozdanich said the time frame is tight, but “we’ve got double crews going in” and he’s confident the work will be completed by the deadline.

The fate of the old turf has yet to be determined. It could be used elsewhere or potentially recycled.

gkingston@vancouversun.com