TECHNOLOGY FOCUS - ELECTRICAL POWER AND ENERGY - Preferred Method: The methanol is produced by reducing the carbon dioxide to produce reaction mixture containing formic acid with concomitant formation of formaldehyde and small amounts of methanol and methane, followed by treatment step conducted under conditions sufficient to convert the formaldehyde to formic acid and methanol without separating the reaction mixture. The methanol is produced by generating carbon monoxide from the carbon dioxide through high temperature reaction with carbon, reacting the carbon monoxide with previously produced methanol to form methyl formate, followed by catalytically hydrogenating the methyl formate to form additional methanol. The methanol is produced by reducing the carbon dioxide to produce reaction mixture containing formic acid with concomitant formation of formaldehyde and small amounts of methanol and methane, augmenting the reaction mixture by reacting, without separation of the reaction mixture, the formaldehyde into methanol with some of the formic acid used as hydrogen source, and reacting some of the formic acid with methanol to form methyl formate, followed by catalytically hydrogenating the methyl formate under conditions sufficient to form methanol. The method further involves transporting the produced methanol fuel to a facility where the fuel is to be combusted to generate energy; reacting the formaldehyde with the co-formed formic acid as hydrogen source, without separating the reaction mixture, into methanol, including reacting the formic acid with methanol to form methyl formate, followed by hydrogenating the methyl formate under conditions sufficient to form double the starting amount of methanol; combusting the fuel (preferably methanol fuel in a power plant) to form exhaust stream that contains carbon dioxide in manner that allows collection of the exhaust stream, and recovering the carbon dioxide of the exhaust stream for use as the chemically recyclable source of carbon dioxide for preparing additional fuel; dehydrating the methanol to produce dimethyl ether, using the dimethyl ether as the fuel or as component of the fuel. The methanol is produced by hydrogentatively converting the carbon dioxide to form reaction mixture that contains methanol, formic acid and formaldehyde without separating the reaction mixture, followed by treatment step conducted to convert the formaldehyde and formic acid to methanol. The hydrogen needed for the hydrogenation of methyl formate is obtained at least some part from cleavage of the formic acid from the reaction mixture. The hydrogen needed for the hydrogenative conversion of carbon dioxide is obtained by the reforming of methane or natural gas or by electrolysis of water using an available energy source. The exhaust stream is obtained by combusting the fuel in a fossil fuel burning power or industrial plant. EXAMPLE - A carbon dioxide in water was electrochemically reduced to formic acid and formaldehyde with methanol formed in smaller amounts while avoiding methane formation in aqueous media and related electrodes at room temperature of 40-90% current efficiency. The mixture containing formic acid and formaldehyde passed over supported basic catalyst in tube reactor at 100-300 degrees C to form methanol and methyl formate (yield 40-50%).