Altmaier said he had already spoken to European Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager about the deal and the process on the possible merger was in a decisive phase.

People familiar with the matter told Reuters on Friday that Siemens' and Alstom's plan to create a European rail champion to take on a Chinese rival had failed to win over EU antitrust regulators, despite German and French backing.

(Reporting by Joern Poltz; Writing by Michelle Martin; Editing by Joseph Nasr)

Stocks treated in this article : Alstom, Siemens