Alitalia, which has made a profit only a few times in its history, was put under special administration earlier this year after staff rejected a plan to cut jobs and salaries.

Germany's Lufthansa (>> Deutsche Lufthansa), British low-cost carrier easyJet (>> EasyJet) and U.S. private equity fund Cerberus are among companies that have expressed an interest in Alitalia.

The minister added that the negotiations with interested parties "need to be concluded either way, otherwise Alitalia cannot continue to operate".

(Reporting by Agnieszka Flak, editing by Steve Scherer)

Stocks treated in this article : Deutsche Lufthansa, EasyJet