Today: Former climate envoy said Donald Trump’s attempts to undermine the energy transition will harm U.S. efforts in global infrastructure and manufacturing; the EPA takes action; Ford's F-150 runs into U.S. tariffs.

Welcome back: The U.S. risks ceding control of the global energy market to China if it continues to turn its back on renewable energy, said John Kerry, the former climate envoy and secretary of state, in an interview with WSJ Pro Sustainable Business's Yusuf Khan.

The former statesman and co-executive chair of asset management firm Galvanize Climate Solutions, said President Trump’s attempts to undermine the energy transition would work against efforts to keep the U.S. at the forefront of global infrastructure and manufacturing.

“There’s a big marketplace out there, and America needs to compete,” said Kerry. “America needs to be in the hunt for those technologies, and I think the president’s goal of being first in class means that these [renewable] technologies require that we continue to be researching, building and deploying,” he said.

Kerry added the global energy market is the largest market in the world, and renewable energy is a major slice of it. He said if Trump pushed to rollback incentives created by the Inflation Reduction Act in the U.S., China would be freely allowed to dominate the manufacturing of clean-energy products like solar panels and wind turbines.

For the full interview, click here.

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Environmental Protection Agency head Lee Zeldin said 31 actions have been initiated and are now under way to deregulate U.S. environmental policies.

A majority of the measures are reconsiderations of existing policies, including regulations on power plants, the oil-and-gas industry, vehicles and wastewater, Zeldin said this week. Standards for mercury, pollutants, greenhouse-gas emissions and air quality are also being reviewed.

The efforts are meant to boost President Trump’s plans to grow the country’s energy and automotive industries, lower the cost of living for Americans and give states more power, Zeldin said. The goal is to lower costs for Americans by making it more affordable to buy a car, heat houses and operate businesses, Zeldin said.

The EPA is terminating the Environmental Justice and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion arms of the EPA, which former President Biden started. It is ending the Good Neighbor Plan that expanded federal rules for states to protect neighboring states from air pollution.

• Lee Zeldin: EPA Ends the ‘Green New Deal’

Aluminum smelters use gobs of electricity, accounting for about 40% of their operating expenses. Rising power costs contributed to their dwindling presence in the U.S. Smelters in Canada have access to low-cost power from hydroelectric generators, the WSJ's Mike Colias and Bob Tita report.

U.S. aluminum company Alcoa asked the Trump administration to exempt Canadian primary aluminum from the tariffs it has imposed on steel and aluminium imports on the grounds that the additional production can’t be started in the U.S. without a plan for lower-cost power.

Ford’s F-150 trucks, one of the company’s biggest profit generators, are among the most aluminum-intensive vehicles on the market. The company a decade ago converted the trucks to a mostly aluminum exterior, including the hood, doors and truck bed, to save weight and enhance fuel efficiency.

A Ford spokesman said it would take many years to rewire its supply chains to get more automotive-grade aluminum from the U.S. He declined to comment on the potential effect on prices should the tariffs last.

Can Formula One Ever Be Sustainable? The motor sport is trying to halve its emissions by 2030. 

The stock-market rout will make IPOs difficult, a disappointing development for a venture market in dire need of liquidity.

Private-credit firms are willing to pay up to $1.5 million for restructuring professionals amid a spike in out-of-court restructurings.

Logistics startups are in demand again, now helping companies facing new tariffs game out costs and find new suppliers, among other services.

Holograms have been primarily used to create visual fireworks at rock concerts. Now a health system is using them for virtual doctor visits.

• Banks’ climate alliance calls vote to ditch pledge on limiting warming to 1.5C. (FT)
   
• Climate group funded by Bill Gates slashes staff in major retreat. (NYT)
   
• Walmart says it’s unlikely to meet 2025 plastic, recycling targets. (ESG Dive)
   
• U.S.-South Korea partnership to build nuclear-powered box ships. (The Loadstar)
   
• Lego nearly triples renewable materials in bricks in 2024. (ESG Today)
   
• German emissions fell 3.4% in 2024, on track for 2030 climate goals. (Reuters)
   
• All the birds returned: How a Chinese project led the way in water and soil conservation. (Guardian)

WSJ Pro Sustainable Business gives you an inside look at how companies are tackling sustainability. Send comments to bureau chief Perry Cleveland-Peck at perry.cleveland-peck@wsj.com and reporter Yusuf Khan at yusuf.khan@wsj.com. Follow us on LinkedIn at wsjperry and yusuf_khan.