U.S. carmaker General Motors could cut between 9,000 and 10,000 jobs as part of its restructuring of its European operations, Nick Reilly, interim head of GM's European business, said on Tuesday.

The company must reduce its production across Europe by between 20 and 25 percent as part of the 3.3 billion euros ($4.9 billion) plan, although final details have yet to be decided, he told a news conference in London.

Reilly said he hoped to announce the full restructuring plan for Europe within three weeks after talks with governments and unions.

The company is prepared to put up some of its own cash to help fund the restructuring, but hopes to receive money from European governments too, he added. The company has about 2 billion euros of its own money to invest in the restructuring.

We have a likely plan but I would rather not give specifics today, he said. It could involve closing a plant. We haven't 100 percent decided. We have some flexibility to use some of our own money.

The 3.3 billion euros will fund a short-term shake-up and will help meet redundancy payments and investment in the company's product portfolio, he added.

GM hopes to continue manufacturing at its UK plants, Ellesmere Port in northwest England and Luton, north of London, he added. Reilly said there may be a chance to quite significantly reduce the 800 British job cuts expected under previous plans.

(Reporting by Peter Griffiths; Editing by David Holmes)

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