The French government said Dec. 2 it is willing to help CMA CGM, but the troubled ocean container carrier must first sign a debt restructuring deal with its creditors.
The government "does not exclude intervention" in CMA CGM "but it must first resolve its debt problem with the banks," said Transport Secretary Dominique Bussereau.
"We would intervene in a second phase," Bussereau said without giving details.
The government's statement of support for CMA CGM came as the carrier entered a third month of talks with its 63 European and Asian banks over restructuring its $5.6 billion debt, much of which is linked to orders for 60 containerships.
CMA CGM has said it will reach agreement by mid-December, a month later than its original target.
The discussions are now said to be focusing on attempts to persuade Korean shipyards to defer deliveries for up to two years and cancel some of the estimated 40 orders they have with CMA CGM.
Potential investors joined negotiations last week at the Finance Ministry in Paris after CMA CGM chairman and founder Jacques Saade said he is seeking companies to buy and hold stakes worth between $300 million and $400 million for five to seven years.
"The government cannot be indifferent to what is happening at CMA CGM … it preoccupies us," Bussereau said.
The government could help CMA CGM by providing funds from the state-run Strategic Investment Fund, set up to assist key French firms weather the global economic downturn.
The government also is under pressure from the French shipowners' association to establish a $1.8 billion fund to help carriers meet banks' demands for extra collateral to cover the fall in the value of ships they have ordered.
CMA CGM, the world's third largest carrier, says it will break even at the end of the year after a $515 million loss in the first six months and will return to profit in 2010.
The government "does not exclude intervention" in CMA CGM "but it must first resolve its debt problem with the banks," said Transport Secretary Dominique Bussereau.
"We would intervene in a second phase," Bussereau said without giving details.
The government's statement of support for CMA CGM came as the carrier entered a third month of talks with its 63 European and Asian banks over restructuring its $5.6 billion debt, much of which is linked to orders for 60 containerships.
CMA CGM has said it will reach agreement by mid-December, a month later than its original target.
The discussions are now said to be focusing on attempts to persuade Korean shipyards to defer deliveries for up to two years and cancel some of the estimated 40 orders they have with CMA CGM.
Potential investors joined negotiations last week at the Finance Ministry in Paris after CMA CGM chairman and founder Jacques Saade said he is seeking companies to buy and hold stakes worth between $300 million and $400 million for five to seven years.
"The government cannot be indifferent to what is happening at CMA CGM … it preoccupies us," Bussereau said.
The government could help CMA CGM by providing funds from the state-run Strategic Investment Fund, set up to assist key French firms weather the global economic downturn.
The government also is under pressure from the French shipowners' association to establish a $1.8 billion fund to help carriers meet banks' demands for extra collateral to cover the fall in the value of ships they have ordered.
CMA CGM, the world's third largest carrier, says it will break even at the end of the year after a $515 million loss in the first six months and will return to profit in 2010.