Ailing Italian carrier Alitalia on Tuesday reported its first-quarter loss widened and said it could not sustain the impact of high oil prices and uncertainty over its fate for much longer.

The airline, which the Italian government has unsuccessfully tried to sell for more than a year, reported an operating loss of EUR161 million euros (USD$248.9 million), wider than the EUR113 million it lost in the period a year earlier.

Alitalia said it urgently needed a capital increase to inject money into its coffers.

The airline also said it appreciated a request from a close aide to Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi seeking confidential information to help a proposed consortium to buy the carrier. But it said it would wait for proof of interest from the group before divulging any data.

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