Struggling German telecoms operator MobilCom needs a cash injection of €200 million to maintain operations, daily Bild Zeitungsaid this morning, citing supervisory board sources.
German government officials, including Economy Minister Werner Mueller are due to meet tomorrow to discuss help for the company, which is facing imminent insolvency after its partner France Telecom cut off vital funding this week.
The move puts 5,500 jobs at risk as the government of Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder defends a slim lead in the polls just over a week before federal elections on September 22nd.
A finance ministry spokesman described the Bild Zeitungreport as speculation while a spokesman for the government of MobilCom's home state of Schleswig-Holstein said the kind of help that may be offered was open ahead of the talks tomorrow.
"There has been no decision at all on the nature or scale of assistance," the spokesman said.
A MobilCom spokesman declined to comment on the company's financial requirements or on what kind of help it would be seeking from the government.