Chemical company 3M has reached a tentative settlement worth at least $10 billion with a series of US cities and municipalities in a per- and polyfluoroalkylated substances (PFAS) pollution case, Bloomberg news agency reported on Friday.
If the agreement is validated by the 3M board of directors and finalised, the US giant will avoid an initial appearance in federal court, which was due to begin on 5 June in South Carolina.
The announcement was well received by the markets, with the company’s shares soaring by more than 10%. A spokesman declined to comment.
Earlier in the day, US companies Chemours Company, DuPont de Nemours and Corteva, had announced a $1.18 billion settlement in a similar case.
Last year, 3M and Flanders reached an agreement to clean up land polluted by the company around its Zwijndrecht site for €578 million.
