Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich has sent shares in Surrey-based tech firm AFC Energy soaring after investing £9m in the company.

The billionaire Russian expressed his interest in the company's aim to bring 'clean power' fuel cell technology a few months ago to boss and Reading fan Ian Williamson.

"You could say I was pretty surprised," Williamson told The Sun. "A while ago he and his team decided they would like to have a look at what we were doing. They then said they would like to make an investment.

"Roman was very impressive. He asked lots of knowledgable questions and was taking a real interest. We did have a quick exchange about Chelsea having just beaten Reading."

Since Abramovich's investment, shares have gone up by 17% at the four-year-old company.

Written by
Danielle Joynson