Germany's government aims for a decision on the three bids for General Motors Corp.'s (GM) local unit, Adam Opel GmbH, by the middle of the week, a government spokesman said Monday.

Ulrich Wilhelm said that Chancellor Angela Merkel had a phone conversation with Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin Saturday and met with the management of Magna International Inc. (MGA) Sunday.

The comments come after government officials met earlier Monday for further talks on the bidders' offers for Opel.

"This week will be a decisive week," Wilhelm told reporters, adding that the government is still in talks with all three bidders. The government aims for a clarification over the future of Opel and progress in the talks have been made over the weekend, Wilhelm said. Further investors have expressed interest in Opel, but no formal bid has been provided, he said.

Austrian-Canadian auto supplier Magna appears to be the frontrunner for Opel, according to recent comments from federal and state governments. Italian automaker Fiat SpA (F.MI) has launched a rival bid for Opel, as well as RHJ International (RHJI.BT), a European buyout firm of investor U.S. Ripplewood with holdings in the auto parts industry.

Merkel aims to meet the chief executive of Fiat in the first half of this week, Wilhelm said. The government's task force has also talked with RHJ but the firm's bid for Opel is less complex than those submitted by Magna and Fiat, he said.

He also rejected suggestions that there might be a split within the government over Opel's future. The comments follow recent comments from Economics Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg, a member of the ruling conservative parties, saying that insolvency remains an option. The ruling Social Democratic Party has criticized these comments, with Vice Chancellor Frank-Walter Steinmeier calling for a stop to talking about insolvency.

Steffen Moritz, spokesman for the economics ministry, said an orderly insolvency remains an option for Opel but the aim is to prevent this from taking place.

The government and the states of Hesse, North Rhine-Westphalia, Thuringia and Rhineland Palatinate, which are home to Opel plants, are considering bridge financing for Opel to keep it operating if GM files for insolvency before Opel can be sold.

The financing, which will only be given if the government and the states regard at least one of the bid as sustainable, aims to give Opel more time for negotiations with the potential investors. The bridge, or interim, financing of around EUR1.5 billion would be from state-owned bank KfW and Landesbanken of the states with Opel plants.

The government is addressing jobs and liquidity needs in its talks with investors while the German side is also still in contact with the U.S. Treasury and GM over patent rights, Wilhelm said. He left it open whether the economics ministry would send zu Guttenberg or one of his deputies to the U.S. for talks.

Web sites: www.bmwi.de; www.bundesregierung.de

-By Andrea Thomas, Dow Jones Newswires; +49-30-288-8410; andrea.thomas@dowjones.com