Confusion on Arriva’s future reached new heights yesterday with the government saying talks had been “exhausted” and the company insisting it was business as usual and negotiations were ongoing.

Speaking on TVM’s breakfast show, Transport Minister Joe Mizzi said the long, drawn-out talks with the public transport provider, which had started at the end of August, had been exhausted and the outcome had been referred to legal and financial experts.

We cannot go on indefinitely with our jobs hanging in the balance

No further details were divulged, with a ministry spokeswoman saying there was “nothing to add”.

In Parliament later, Mr Mizzi used the words “critical moments” to describe what he said was the final phase of talks with Arriva.

He said the people were yet to learn of the tangled mess that the Nationalist government had gotten into in its dealings with the company. Putting the initial wrongs right had cost €400,000 but the present government was doing the job “without spending a euro”.

The changes needed to the present system were huge, Mr Mizzi said in reply to questions by Nationalist MPs Jason Azzopardi and Toni Bezzina.

An Arriva spokesman earlier told Times of Malta the company had held long and detailed discussions with the ministry on issues including funding a new network and the government’s aspiration to replace the contentious bendy buses.

Contradicting the statement made earlier by Mr Mizzi, he insisted that talks had not been concluded and that any announcement would be made in due course.

“In the meantime, it is business as usual,” the spokesman said.

Talks had started when Arriva had to pull its 68 bendy buses off the roads in the wake of three incidents where the engine compartments had caught fire.

As both sides dug in their heels, speculation grew that the company might opt to terminate its 10-year contract prematurely, possibly by mutual consent. It also transpired that Arriva had sustained losses of some €35 million since it began operations in July 2011.

The Sunday Times of Malta has reported that Paramount Coaches was showing interest in taking over the service.

On TVM, Mr Mizzi was rather evasive when asked about Arriva’s future and the fate of its employees, saying only that the government was committed to ensuring an efficient bus service.

This prompted the General Workers’ Union to request an urgent meeting with the government and Arriva’s management.

The union said that if Arriva left, it would insist that no employees be made redundant by the new public transport operator. It would be monitoring the situation and protecting the interests of its members.

Meanwhile, Arriva employees who spoke to this newspaper on condition of anonymity said the uncertainty of recent months was taking its toll.

“We cannot go on indefinitely with our jobs hanging in the balance as we need to know where we stand,” a bus driver said.

Apart from the bendy buses issue, the government and Arriva also disagreed on the proposed routes that have yet to be announced.

Mr Mizzi said it would take about six months to order new buses to be able to roll out a revamped service.