PARIS - The French government on Sunday stepped squarely into the middle of General Electric’s bid for Alstom, one of the largest industrial companies in France, warning that its national interest was in play and that the state, not the companies, would decide the outcome.
“G.E. and Alstom have their calendar, which is that of their shareholders,†the economy minister, Arnaud Montebourg, said, “but the French government has its own, which is that of economic sovereignty.â€
G.E. is seeking to buy Alstom’s energy business, and Mr. Montebourg had been scheduled to meet on Sunday with Jeffrey Immelt, the American company’s chief executive. But the meeting was canceled after the French government welcomed the approach by Siemens, the German industrial giant that is Alstom’s rival, which has the advantage from the French point of view of being a company based within the European Union.
Mr. Montebourg also said in the statement that Siemens had made known a proposition “to create two European champions in the areas of energy and transport, one centered around Siemens, the other around Alstom.â€
The government will take “the time necessary to carry out a serious examination of the two proposals,†he added, noting that Alstom’s sales were heavily dependent on public demand and government-supported exports. And he called on Alstom and all its stakeholders to “examine all of the offers on the table.â€
