Bankrupt fiberglass insulation maker Owens Corning reached a $5.2 billion settlement with its asbestos claimants, John Cooney, a lawyer for the claimants, said on Wednesday.


Shares of the Toledo, Ohio-based company surged 58 cents or 62.4 percent to $1.51 in afternoon over-the-counter bulletin board trading.


Cooney said that with the deal in place, the company is set to emerge from bankruptcy. Owens Corning filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in October 2000 under the weight of hundreds of thousands of asbestos lawsuits.


A spokesman for Owens Corning was not immediately available for comment.


Cooney, a partner with the Chicago law firm Cooney & Conway, said the settlement will be used to pay claimants with asbestos-related illnesses and those who are diagnosed with one within the "next 30 years or so."


He said part of the payment is contingent on there being no bailout legislation from the U.S. Congress by the end of this year's congressional term.


Source: Reuters