Aeroflot Russian Airlines said on Monday it will tell Alitalia in two weeks' time whether or not it is interested in acquiring a controlliNg stake in the Italian carrier, the Russian news agency Interfax reported.
In the event the Russian airline does intend to make a bid, it will offer up to one billion euros, Aeroflot deputy chief financial officer Mikhail Poluboyarinov told the new agency.
The airline official added that Alitalia's management informed Aeroflot last Friday on the conditions for presenting an offer.
"This time there will not be an auction but rather a group of strategic investors presenting their offers," Poluboiarinov said.
Last Thursday, Alitalia CEO Maurizio Prato told parliament that the Italian carrier expected to find a buyer for Italian carrier by November 10.
The Italian government decided at the end of last year to sell most if not all of the Treasury's 49.9% stake in Alitalia.
An attempt to auction the stake failed this summer after all bidders dropped out because of the conditions imposed by the Treasury.
Prato was then called in to negotiate the direct sale of the Treasury's stake.
Earlier this month a shortlist of possible buyers was announced. On the list were Air France-KLM, Germany's Lufthansa, Aeroflot Russian Airlines, Italy's second-biggest airline Air One, the American private equity group Texas Pacific and a consortium led by former Italian Constitutional Court justice Antonio Baldassarre.
