Air France KLM appears to be on the verge of being named a minority partner in the reorganized Alitalia, beating out Lufthansa for the right to purchase a 20%-25% stake, according to widespread press reports from Italy.

Investor group Compagnia Aerea Italia met with Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi yesterday and “explained . . . their preference for Air France and were told there were no objections from the government,” a CAI source told Reuters in Rome.