Will pound's decline impact UK cleantech?

Will the declining value of the British pound (though it’s been on the uptick today) impact cleantech spending in the UK? We don’t have access to a working crystal ball (does anyone?), but we’ll offer a few thoughts:

• While it broke all records last year, cleantech investing is down globally so far this year. Cleantechnica reports that IPOs are at a dead halt for the first quarter, but that one expert predicts life to return to the market by the third quarter of 2009. So the problem clearly isn’t just the UK’s; it’s global. (See the Financial Times’ economic weather map.)
• Still, musings like these — “Is the British Pound on the Path to Collapse?” — don’t inspire much confidence. You’ll notice there’s not been much cleantech news out of Reykjavik lately, though the UK’s no Iceland yet (knock wood).
• On the other hand, soft pound + stronger dollar = more incentive for US companies to spend in the UK. Product Design and Development notes, for example, “The current value of the British pound allows US buyers of British software to take advantage of a favorable strong dollar/weak pound exchange rate that could produce savings of around 20 percent on their purchases.” While spending like that isn’t outright investment in UK cleantech development, it does keep the currency flowing.
• Beware, though, of self-fulfilling prophecies. When guys like Jim Rogers declare the pound is “finished,” some investors might think twice before looking to the UK for opportunities … no matter how much Gordon Brown grouses about “speculators.” Masdar, for instance, recently seemed to develop some buyer’s remorse over the proposed London Array wind energy project, and it’s possible others might also start coming down with cold feet.

Will today’s boost in the pound’s value mark a bottom reached and brighter financial skies ahead? What do you think? Let us know!