Recycling and Utilisation of Carbon Dioxide Recycling and Utilisation of Carbon Dioxide in the European Union's Directives FreÂde Âric-Paul Piguet,* FreÂde Âric Meylan,** Thierry Largey,*** Suren Erkman**** This article has been written in the context of the project Assessing the sustainability of global carbon recycling: Towards an interdisciplinary approach thanks to a grant from the Swiss Academies of Arts and Sciences, Network for Transdisciplinary Research. Abstract In September 2015, the European Parliament and the Council adopted a new directive (2015/1513) that amended two existing directives in order to bolster the production of advanced fuels, biofuels, and ``CO 2 - fuels'' in the transport sector. The combination of carbon dioxide and hydrogen (obtained by means of electrolysis with surpluses of renewable electricity) produces synthetic and renewable fuels that can easily be stored and transported in existing infrastructures. It is also possible to use CO 2 -enriched microalgae as a feedstock for biofuel. To the extent these advanced fuels can be substituted for fossil energy, they could be helpful in the context of climate mitigation and energy transition, provided the regulatory framework is geared towards such an ambitious purpose. Our comments address the relevance of legislative activity around such a strategy, mainly what kind of legal provisions are already taking shape at the European Union level. We discuss the ability of European directives to manage CO 2 -fuels and biofuels made from microalgae with CO 2 enrichment. This subject is new, and the literature on related legal provisions is rare, thus the need to establish a reader's guide to the existing regulatory framework. I. Introduction The context in which the European Union (EU) addresses carbon capture and utilisation (CCU) is related to the challenges of energy transition and climate change mitigation. The growing interest in these technologies appears in an institutional context when the EU defines its objectives by stating it is committed to becoming ``the world leader in renew- able energy, the global hub for developing the next generation of technically advanced and competitive renewable energies''. 1 The EU has set a target of at least 27 per cent renewable energy by 2030. 2 For its part, the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) advocates that renewable energy sources account for almost 45 per cent of power generation by 2030. 3 The EESC has unanimously bolstered the rise of renewable energy and the ``absolute necessity'' of energy storage, which amounts to ``tens or hundreds of GW''. 4 It envisages a wide array of different technological options such as ``compressed air energy storage'', ``mechanical kinetic energy'' (flywheel storage), ``thermal energy'' (heat), and ``electrochemical energy'' (batteries). It notably singles out ``methanised hydrogen'', a synthetic fuel (methane) produced from the combination of CO 2 and hydrogen. 5 Consequently, the EESC underlines that methanised hydrogen has by far the greatest energy storage potential in current gas infrastructures (for long periods) and can also form long-chain hydro- carbons with multiple applications (notably as sub- stitutes for fossil resources in plastics). 6 In academic literature, the term ``methanised hydrogen'' is usually replaced by other synonyms, including ``CO 2 methanation'' or power-to-gas (which defines the process) and ``renewable power methane'' (which defines the product). 7 In addition to methane, * Senior Researcher, Centre of Public Law, Faculty of Law, Criminal Justice and Public Administration; and Institute of Earth Surface Dynamics, Faculty of Geoscience and Environment, University of Lausanne. Email: Frederic.Pi- guet@unil.ch. ** Senior Researcher, Institute of Earth Surface Dynamics, Faculty of Geoscience and Environment, University of Lausanne. *** PhD Student, Centre of Public Law, Faculty of Law, Criminal Justice and Public Administration, University of Lausanne. **** Professor, Institute of Earth Surface Dynamics, Faculty of Geoscience and Environment, University of Lausanne. 1 Energy Union Package, Communication from the Com- mission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee, the Committee of the Regions and the European Investment Bank, A Framework Strategy for a Resilient Energy Union with a Forward-Looking Climate Change Policy Brussels, COM(2015) 80, 25.2.2015, p. 15. 2 Ibid. 3 EESC, Opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee on ``Energy storage: a factor in integration and energy security'' (own-initiative opinion), Rapporteur: Pierre-Jean Coulon, (2015/C 383/04), (OJ C383/19) 17-11- 2015, p. 20. 4 Ibid., pp. 19-20. 5 Cf. M. Sterner, Bioenergy and renewable power methane in integrated 100% renewable energy systems, Kassel Univer- sity Press, 2009, 234 p. 6 EESC (OJ C383/19) 17-11-2015, §4.4. 7 Cf. M. Sterner, see note 5. 2 European Energy and Environmental Law Review February 2017