The German company Lufthansa has spent the last two decades creating a business empire that extends to the richest countries of continental Europe. Forced to stop work because of the coronavirus crisis, the company is already seeking financial support from four governments.

Europe’s largest airline warned late Thursday that it is short of working capital and will not be able to survive without state aid from Germany, Switzerland, Austria, and Belgium. Each of these countries has contributed with its former national carriers to the expansion of the airline, which is negotiating an incentive package worth up to 10 billion EUR, according to people familiar with the matter.

It depends on the negotiations on how much the German carrier will receive from each country and what influence it will have on the company.

The German government views Lufthansa as a systematically important airline and will not allow it to collapse, a government official said on Friday.

Lufthansa has enjoyed its expansion in the last decade, thanks to the steady growth of European travel. Before being hit by the effects of the spread of the coronavirus, the carrier, with more than 700 aircraft, dominated the business flight market and last year even considered adding Alitalia to its portfolio.

Lufthansa’s shares are trading at a 17-year low. The airline is forced to land almost its entire fleet and in each of the countries with which it is negotiating now has its own units. The company also looks forward to European Union decisions on vouchers and state aid.

The airline is struggling to maintain its liquidity amid expectations that the market will not recover quickly this year. For most of its employees, Lufthansa uses a government program designed to compensate for wage losses when companies are forced to suspend operations. However, cargo flights continue to be carried, including the transportation of medical supplies needed to combat the virus, but the revenue does not come close to meeting the costs.

Lufthansa was a state-owned company until 1990.

“The board of directors is confident the talks will be successful”, said Lufthansa late on Thursday, declining further comment.

However, the governing coalition of Germany is divided over the terms of aid for Lufthansa, say people familiar with the negotiations. While more conservative CDU of Chancellor Angela Merkel would be pleased to see the government take a non-voting shareholding, their partner in the Coalition of the Social Democrats seeks powers to eventually cut jobs as a condition for public funding from Berlin.

Austria

Lufthansa’s subsidiary Austrian Airlines has intensive talks for several hundred million euros in short-term financing, according to people familiar with the negotiations. This will include loans, loan guarantees, and direct payments for missed revenue.

For long-term financing, the Austrian government urges Germany, Switzerland, and Belgium to consider more discounts. Long-term support may include a direct stake in a German airline or the issuance of convertible bonds and regular loans.

Austria has been in technical talks with Austrian Airlines so that the airline can formally seek state support, a government spokesman said, declining to give further details.

Switzerland

In Switzerland, where Lufthansa operates the Swiss national carrier after its acquisition after the 2008 financial crisis, the state has ruled out the possibility of acquiring a stake in the company. The Treasury spokesman declined to comment further.

Belgium

Belgium is considering a 290 million EUR grant to Brussels Airlines, also a Lufthansa company acquired in 2009, according to local media reports.

“Instead of giving Lufthansa 10 billion EUR in state aid that they will use to abuse their dominant position, Germany should reduce airport charges by 50% for all airlines”, commented the Ryanair CEO, Michael O’Leary.

The European Commission declined to comment on the Lufthansa situation, but said it was “very aware of the difficult situation in the aviation sector due to the coronavirus pandemic”, and EU rules allow governments to provide assistance.

Governments in Scandinavia and the United Kingdom have already provided funding for airlines, whether through direct loans or government funds. Air France-KLM became the latest carrier to receive state aid, with shareholders from the French and Dutch governments pledging 11 billion EUR in loans and guarantees, while in Germany the TUI AG tour operator received loan guarantees of 1.8 billion EUR from KfW.