ROME (MF-Dow Jones)--Fiat SpA's (F.MI) chairman said Thursday he doesn't expect a decision on the sale of General Motors (GM) unit Adam Opel to be long.

Speaking on the sidelines of an event in Rome, Luca Cordero di Montezemolo said that the company's Chief Executive Sergio Marchionne "did the important thing, to present the German government an offer."

Fiat made a non-cash offer for General Motors Europe units Opel and Vauxhall on Wednesday.

-By Elisabetta Rovis with MF-Dow Jones, Dow Jones Newswires, +39 02 5821 9906; sabrina.cohen@dowjones.com