Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne will meet here Tuesday with German Chancellor Angela Merkel ahead of an expected preliminary decision mid-week on a future partner for German automaker Opel, Merkel's office said on Monday.
Marchionne is expected to pitch Fiat's revised offer for the main marque in General Motors' European division which is said to include greater clarification on risk-sharing and capital investment as requested by the German government.
Speaking on Monday, Merkel said it was important to ''examine all ramifications of the negotiations'' involving not only Fiat's bid but also those presented by Austria-Canadian auto parts maker Magna International and RHJ International, a European arm of the American private equity fund Ripplewood.
Merkel's office said on Monday that she had conferred with Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin because Magna's bid is being backed by Russia's biggest bank, Sberbank.
According to the German press, Marchionne will also hold talks with Germany's economy minister, Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg and bring with him John Elkann, Fiat's deputy chairman and grandson of the company's late post-war chief Gianni Agnelli.
The German press claims that the German government appears to be leaning more towards the Magna offer because of its investment program, whereas the Fiat offer involves integrating Opel into a global automaker with the operations of Fiat and Detroit No.3 Chrysler, which Fiat is set to take control over.
Nevertheless, all three bids are reported to have fallen short of the German government's expectations and on Monday the economy ministry said that bankruptcy remained a option as a means to restructure the company.
Although Opel is owned by GM, the German government has gotten involved in the negotiations because of the vast amounts of loans federal and regional governments will have to guarantee the automaker to allow for it survival.
GM has until June 1 to present Washington with its restructuring plan in order to qualify for further federal bail-out funds.
