A car that runs on compressed air could be available in the UK within two years.

MDI, the French company behind the technology, is looking for investors worldwide to finance production.

Christian Bronsil, project manager at MDI, says: “In 18 months we will be starting production in France and India. At the moment we don’t have an investor in the UK. We do have some interest, but nothing has been decided yet.”

Tata Motors is backing the project in India, while MDI is financing the French venture itself. The cars are powered by 90 cubic metres of air compressed to 300 bar.

MDI has taken 150,000 orders for the car, which will cost less than £5,000.