According to the French newspaper, Mr Montebourg's idea "would be a partnership with a minor manufacturer, the time to stabilise activity" in Florange.
Chairman Lakshmi Mittal over plans to shut two blast furnaces in Florange, France, threatening to nationalize the facility, and told Mr. Mittal he wasn't welcome in France anymore.
He accused steelmaker Arcelor Mittal of "lying" and "disrespecting" the country and said it was no longer welcome during a spat over the closure of two furnaces at its steel plant in Florange.
The talks come ahead of a deadline on Saturday which Mr Mittal gave the state to find a buyer for the two idled blast furnaces in Florange, a traditional steel town in north-eastern France.