CORRECTED - Siemens bosses hold "good conversation" with SEC

(Corrects lead to show meeting took place in Washington, not New York)

MUNICH Dec 17 (Reuters) - The chairman and chief executive of Siemens (SIEGn.DE) met officials from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in Washington on Monday to discuss a corruption probe into the German industrial conglomerate.

"It was a good conversation," a company spokesman in Munich said. "This was the start of further direct talks."

He declined to give any more details.

The SEC and Munich prosecutors are investigating suspect payments that Siemens employees made to parties described as business consultants.

Siemens has said its internal bribery and corruption investigation has identified a total of 1.3 billion euros ($1.86 billion) in such questionable payments.

The investigations cost Siemens up to 1.4 billion euros in its fiscal year just ended, and the company has so far dismissed about 140 employees for compliance violations.

Werner Moenius, the head of Siemens' European works council, told Reuters last month he was optimistic that the SEC probe would result in a large fine and not a blacklisting from U.S. public contracts.

Moenius is on a committee that is informed about key decisions at Siemens. (Reporting by Irene Preisinger and Christian Kraemer)