A settlement with the U.S. authorities over emissions test cheating will push up the cost for Volkswagen, but the bill is likely to remain below 20 billion euros ($21 billion), a source quoted by Reuters said on Wednesday.

Europe’s biggest carmaker has said it is in advanced talks with the Justice Department over a $4.3 billion settlement, adding that meant it would exceed current provisions set aside to cover the costs of the scandal.

Volkswagen (VW) has already announced 18.2 billion euros ($19.1 billion) of provisions to cover the costs of “Dieselgate,” of which 16.2 billion euros were booked in 2015.

“We are counting on a sum of 16 billion plus X. The X is likely to be in the 2 to 4 billion range,” the source said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

VW declined to comment.

The German company’s supervisory board was meeting on Wednesday to approve the draft deal with the Justice Department, which would be a major milestone in its attempts to recover from the biggest business scandal in its 80-year history.

VW shares rose as much as 4 percent in early trade to their highest since the scandal broke in September 2015.

Autor: Bogdan Tudorache

Active in the economic and business press for the past 26 years, Bogdan graduated Law and then attended intensive courses in Economics and Business English. He went up to the position of editor-in-chief since 2006 and has provided management and editorial policy for numerous economic publications dedicated especially to the community of foreign investors in Romania. From 2003 to 2013 he was active mainly in the financial-banking sector. He started freelancing for Energynomics in 2013, notable for his advanced knowledge of markets, business communities and a mature editorial style, both in Romanian and English.