Extreme Value Theorem in Economics
One can prove the existence of such optimal plans using the extreme value theorem of Weierstrass, but it requires some advanced math.
Here is a toy version of the model without energy and emissions. Both the instantaneous utility functions $u:\mathbb{R}_+\to\mathbb{R}$ and the production function $f:\mathbb{R}_+\to\mathbb{R}$ are assumed to be continuous and nondecreasing. Moreover, $u$ is assumed to be bounded (!). There is given initial capital stock $k_1\geq 0$. The space of feasible consumption and production plans is defined as $$F=\big\{(c_1,k_1,c_2,k_2,\ldots)\mid 0\leq k_{t+1}\leq f(k_t-c_t)\}, k_t\geq c_t\geq 0\big\}.$$
$F$ describes all feasible paths of consumption and capital.
This set is a nonempty compact subset of $\mathbb{R}^\infty$ endowed with the product topology. Here is why: By Tychonoff's theorem, the set $$\prod_{t=1}^\infty [0,f^t(k_1)]^2$$ with $f^0$ the identity function $f^{t+1}=f\circ f^t$ is compact and $F$ is a subset of this compact set.  By definition, all coordinate functions are continuous. Each of the relevant inequalities defines a closed set and $F$ is, therefore, a closed subset of a compact set and, therefore, compact itself. Also, the plan that never invests and consumes everything is in $F$, so $F$ is nonempty.
The utility function $U:F\to\mathbb{R}$ given by
$$U(c_1,k_1,c_2,k_2,\ldots)=\sum_{t=1}^\infty \beta^t u(c_t)$$
is well-defined and continuous in the product topology. Since the utility function is bounded, $U$ will always be finite and, therefore, well-defined. To see that it is continuous, note that since $u$ is bounded, there exists for each $\epsilon&gt;0$ some $T$ such that the utility of any two paths that only differ at times later than $T$ can differ by at most $\epsilon/2$. Since all coordinate functions are continuous, if the two consumption plans are close enough in the first $T$ coordinates, they will differ at most by $\epsilon/2$. So if the paths are close enough at finitely many coordinates, the corresponding utility will be close enough. So $U$ is continuous in the product topology.
So $U$ is a continuous function on the nonempty compact set $F$. By the extreme value theorem of Weierstrass, $U$ takes on a maximum at some point in $F$ and such a point is an optimal plan.
You can find a more general proof of the existence of optimal plans along these lines in the book &quot;Dynamic Programming in Economics&quot; by Le Van and Dana. The assumption that $F$ is increasing is not needed, you can replace the product of intervals that includes $F$ by bounding it with the largest values that can be produced instead of the one that comes from always reinvesting capital. That $u$ is bounded was assumed to guarantee that $U$ is finite. One can replace this by an assumption that guarantees that the instantaneous utility cannot increase to
fast along a feasible path.