Assessment of the compliance of the regulations on promotion of renewable energy investments in the European Union with European Union law

This dissertation is an inquiry into the question of whether the regulations enacted in the European Union in relation to promotion of renewable energy investments are in compliance with European Union domestic law and also with international law within the framework of European Union law. Within this context, the first chapter is a review of the compliance of the Member States' support schemes for renewable energy investments with the provisions of the Treaties, particularly with the common market principles, considering the provisions of the Treaties and secondary law binding the Union and the Member States in this respect and the judgments of the Court of Justice of the European Union. It was observed in this review that there was a conflict between the principles of free movement and the principle of climate change mitigation and environmental protection, and that efforts were made to resolve this conflict by establishing renewable energy projects at Union level and increasing common projects between the Member States. The second chapter delves into the question of whether the regulations enacted by the Member States with regards to renewable energy investments are in compliance with international law within the framework of European Union law. Within this context, provisions of the World Trade Organization Agreements and the Energy Charter Treaty and the free trade agreements concluded by the European Union were discussed. In addition, the arbitral awards and the Court of Justice of the European Union judgments regarding disputes arising from renewable energy investments were examined, and the European Union's search for resolution of these disputes were discussed. It was concluded that feed-in tariffs, widely implemented in the renewable energy sector, may be legitimized within the context of environmental protection but this did not apply to local content requirements. It was also found that there were conflicts between arbitral proceedings and European Union law. The solution to these conflicts is apparently the modernization of the Energy Charter Treaty and harmonization thereof with the Paris Agreement. In addition, establishment of a multilateral investment court will contribute to ensuring the harmony of European Union law and international law as to settlement of the conflicts arising from renewable energy investments within the context of international investment law. Key Words: Renewable Energy Investments, EU Energy Law, Common Commercial Policy, Energy Charter Treaty, WTO Rules, Local Content Requirements, Multilateral Investment Court, Achmea Decision, Komstroy Decision, New Generation Free Trade Agreements.