Aid for GM

General Motors CEO Fritz Henderson said GM was urging the government to provide more funds as the struggling carmaker looks to sell off its German subsidiary Opel and other European operations as part of a massive restructuring effort.

"With respect to the German government, we have a need for funding actually in our European business that is important and urgent," Henderson said in a conference call with reporters on Monday. "We're going make sure that any partner we pick for the business would be suitable for them."

Henderson said GM was prepared to take a minority stake in its major European subsidiaries, which also include Britain's Vauxhall. Italy's Fiat Spa, which already plans to take over Chrysler, and Canadian-Austrian firm Magna are both involved in the takeover talks.

"We're speaking with multiple bidders with the objective to at least have some understanding of what an agreement would look like," Henderson said.

GM wants billions in state aid

GM Europe has said it needs to cut costs by $1.2 billion (880 million euros) to return German brand Opel to profit by 2011. It has also said it needs 3.3 billion euros in aid from European governments to avert job cuts and site closures.

Others on GM's chopping block include Sweden's Saab and US brands Hummer, Saturn and Pontiac.

Bankruptcy is still the most likely outcome for the largest US carmaker as the company races to settle outstanding debt with its creditors and prove it can run a viable operation. Later this week GM will settle on a list of dealerships to be closed as part of that effort, Henderson said.

US President Barack Obama has given GM a June 1 deadline to restructure or file for insolvency.

Bankruptcy "probable"

"Given the objectives that we've set for ourselves it's more probable that we'll need to accomplish our goals in a bankruptcy," Henderson said. "But there's the still an opportunity and still a chance for it to be done outside of the court process."

Henderson said the automaker was doing a country-by-country analysis to determine where it needs to file for bankruptcy. Even if GM files for bankruptcy in the US, it doesn't automatically mean it will file in other locations.

General Motors is currently surviving on $15.4 billion in loans from the US government.