The paper said on Thursday that under an Alitalia rescue plan being prepared by the government, state-controlled firms led by Italian state railways would end up with 51 percent of the airline. They could include Poste Italiane and Eni, it said.

"We have not been involved in any operation on Alitalia and the idea of us investing in the company is unfounded," the spokesman said in an emailed statement.

(Reporting by Stephen Jewkes, writing by Agnieszka Flak; Editing by Mark Bendeich)