Shares leap as Abramovich buys in to Clean Air Power

BILLIONAIRE Russian tycoon and Chelsea FC owner Roman Abramovich and the wife of one of his best friends, have supported a £5m fund-raising by Lancashire company Clean Air Power.

Mr Abramovich’s Ervington Investments and Zara Shvidler, who is married to Eugene Shvidler, another ultra-wealthy Russian, were described as “two new strategic investors” by the Leyland-based firm. Shares surged 14.8% to 10.6p on the news.

Clean Air Power, which is developing dual-fuel engine management software for heavy duty vehicles, placed 51.9 million shares at 9.625p to raise £5m net of expenses.

The company said Ervington and Ms Shvidler had been willing to subscribe “if necessary” for the entire placing which contributed significantly to the successful fundraising.  

As a result of significant institutional interest, the subscriptions of each of Ervington and Ms Shvidler were scaled back and they will each have an interest in approximately 1.5% of the business.

The proceeds from the placing will be used to strengthen the firm’s balance sheet ahead of future partnerships, to supplement working capital and to support marketing and sales activities in Russia and the US.

Russia is an increasingly important market for Clean Air Power with demand for natural gas vehicles expected to grow significantly as major Russian gas companies plan to invest heavily in expanding the gas refueling network.

John Pettitt, chief executive of Clean Air Power said: “”We are delighted to have completed a successful fundraising with strong support from existing and new shareholders.

“The investment by Ervington Investments and Ms Shvidler confirms the huge potential of our Dual-FuelTM technology and firmly endorses our strategy to develop markets in Europe, US and Russia.

“The trend towards the adoption of natural gas vehicles around the world is growing, driven by cost savings, reductions in emissions and increasing investment in new refuelling stations by major gas supply companies. With the support of our existing and new investors we are well placed to execute our commercial strategy across our target markets and deliver value to our shareholders.”