87 FR 16 pgs. 3774-3776 - Granular Polytetrafluoroethylene Resin From the Russian Federation: Final Affirmative Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value
Type: NOTICEVolume: 87Number: 16Pages: 3774 - 3776
Pages: 3774, 3775, 3776Docket number: [A-821-829]
FR document: [FR Doc. 2022-01335 Filed 1-24-22; 8:45 am]
Agency: Commerce Department
Sub Agency: International Trade Administration
Official PDF Version: PDF Version
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
[A-821-829]
Granular Polytetrafluoroethylene Resin From the Russian Federation: Final Affirmative Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value
AGENCY:
Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, Department of Commerce.
SUMMARY:
The Department of Commerce (Commerce) determines that imports of granular polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) resin from the Russian Federation (Russia) are being, or are likely to be, sold in the United States at less than fair value (LTFV).
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DATES:
Applicable January 25, 2022.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Jaron Moore or William Horn, AD/CVD Operations, Office VIII, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-3640 or (202) 482-4868, respectively.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
On September 2, 2021, Commerce published its preliminary determination in the LTFV investigation of granular PTFE resin from Russia, in which we also postponed the final determination until January 18, 2022. 1 For a complete description of the events that followed the Preliminary Determination, see the Issues and Decision Memorandum. 2 The Issues and Decision Memorandum is a public document and is on file electronically via Enforcement and Compliance's Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Centralized Electronic Service System (ACCESS). ACCESS is available to registered users at https://access.trade.gov. In addition, a complete version of the Issues and Decision Memorandum can be accessed directly at https://access.trade.gov/public/FRNoticesListLayout.aspx .
Footnotes:
1 ? See Granular Polytetrafluoroethylene Resin from the Russian Federation: Preliminary Affirmative Determination of Sales at the Less Than Fair Value, Postponement of Final Determination, and Extension of Provisional Measures, 86 FR 49297 (September 2, 2021) ( Preliminary Determination ), and accompanying Preliminary Decision Memorandum (PDM).
2 ? See Memorandum, "Issues and Decision Memorandum for the Final Affirmative Determination in the Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigation of Granular Polytetrafluoroethylene Resin from the Russian Federation," dated concurrently with, and hereby adopted by, this notice (Issues and Decision Memorandum).
Period of Investigation
The period of investigation is January 1, 2020, through December 31, 2020.
Scope of the Investigation
The product covered by this investigation is granular PTFE from Russia. For a complete description of the scope of this investigation, see Appendix I.
Scope Comments
No interested party commented on the scope of the investigation as it appeared in the Preliminary Determination. Therefore, no changes were made to the scope of the investigation.
Analysis of Comments Received
All issues raised in the case and rebuttal briefs that were submitted by parties in this investigation are addressed in the Issues and Decision Memorandum. For a list of the issues raised by interested parties and addressed in the Issues and Decision Memorandum, see Appendix II to this notice.
Verification
Commerce was unable to conduct on-site verification of the information relied upon in making its final determination in this investigation. However, we took additional steps in lieu of an on-site verification to verify the information relied upon in making this final determination, in accordance with section 782(i) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act). 3
Footnotes:
3 ? See Commerce's Letter, "Antidumping Duty Investigation of Granular PTFE Resin from Russia: Supplemental Questionnaire in Lieu of On-Site Verification," dated September 16, 2021.
Changes Since the Preliminary Determination
Based on the comments received from interested parties and record information, we made no changes to our preliminary weighted-average dumping margin calculations for HaloPolymer. 4 For a discussion of the comments received, see the Issues and Decision Memorandum.
Footnotes:
4 ?HaloPolymer OJSC, HaloPolymer Kirovo-Chepetsk, LLC (HPKC), HaloPolymer Perm, OJSC (HPP), HaloPolymer Trading, Inc. (HPTR), Limited Liability Company Trading House HaloPolymer (HPTH), and Limited Liability Company First Fluoroplastic Plant (FFP) (collectively, HaloPolymer).
All-Others Rate
Section 735(c)(5)(A) of the Act provides that the estimated weighted-average dumping margin for all other producers and exporters not individually investigated shall be equal to the weighted average of the estimated weighted-average dumping margins established for exporters and producers individually investigated excluding rates that are zero, de minimis, or determined entirely under section 776 of the Act. Commerce calculated an individual estimated weighted-average dumping margin for HaloPolymer, the only individually examined exporter/producer in this investigation. Because the only individually calculated dumping margin is not zero, de minimis, or based entirely on facts otherwise available, the estimated weighted-average dumping margin calculated for HaloPolymer is the margin assigned to all other producers and exporters, pursuant to section 735(c)(5)(A) of the Act.
Final Determination
The final estimated weighted-average dumping margins are as follows:
| Exporter/producer | Estimated weighted- average dumping margin (percent) | Cash deposit rate (adjusted for subsidy offsets) (percent) |
|---|---|---|
| Halopolymer? 5 | 17.99 | 17.36 |
| All Others | 17.99 | 17.36 |
Disclosur e
Footnotes:
5 ?The final rate calculated applies to subject merchandise produced by HPKC, HPP, and FFP and exported by either HPTH or HaloPolymer. See Preliminary Determination, 86 FR 49297, 49298.
Normally, Commerce discloses to the parties in a proceeding the calculations that it performed in connection with the final determination in accordance with 19 CFR 351.224(b). However, because we made no changes to our preliminary weighted-average dumping margin calculations for HaloPolymer, there are no calculations to disclose for this final determination.
Continuation of Suspension of Liquidation
[top] In accordance with section 735(c)(1)(B) of the Act, Commerce will instruct U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to continue to suspend liquidation of all entries of granular
Pursuant to section 735(c)(1)(B)(ii) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.210(d), we will instruct CBP to require a cash deposit for such entries of merchandise equal to the estimated weighted-average dumping margin or the estimated all-others rate, as follows: (1) The cash deposit rate for the respondent listed above will be equal to the company-specific estimated weighted-average dumping margin determined in this final determination; (2) if the exporter is not a respondent identified above but the producer is, then the cash deposit rate will be equal to the company-specific estimated weighted-average dumping margin established for that producer of the subject merchandise; and (3) the cash deposit rate for all other producers and exporters will be equal to the all-others estimated weighted-average dumping margin. These suspension-of-liquidation instructions will remain in effect until further notice.
In the event that a countervailing duty (CVD) order is issued, and suspension of liquidation is resumed in the companion CVD investigation on granular PTFE resin from Russia, Commerce will instruct CBP to require, for this antidumping duty (AD) investigation, cash deposits adjusted by the amount of export subsidies, as appropriate. These adjustments are reflected in the final column of the rate chart, above. Until such suspension of liquidation is resumed in the companion CVD investigation, and so long as suspension of liquidation continues under this AD investigation, the cash deposit rates for this AD investigation will be the rates identified in the estimated weighted-average dumping margin column in the rate chart, above.
International Trade Commission Notification
In accordance with section 735(d) of the Act, we will notify the International Trade Commission (ITC) of the final affirmative determination of sales at LTFV. Because Commerce's final determination is affirmative, in accordance with section 735(b)(2) of the Act, the ITC will make its final determination as to whether the domestic industry in the United States is materially injured, or threatened with material injury, by reason of imports or sales (or the likelihood of sales) for importation of granular PTFE from Russia no later than 45 days after this final determination. If the ITC determines that such injury does not exist, this proceeding will be terminated, and all cash deposits posted will be refunded and suspension of liquidation will be lifted. If the ITC determines that such injury does exist, Commerce will issue an AD order directing CBP to assess, upon further instruction by Commerce, AD duties on all imports of the subject merchandise entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after the effective date of the suspension of liquidation, as discussed above in the "Continuation of Suspension of Liquidation" section.
In addition, we are making available to the ITC all non-privileged and nonproprietary information related to this investigation. We will allow the ITC access to all privileged and business proprietary information in our files, provided the ITC confirms that it will not disclose such information, either publicly or under an administrative protective order (APO), without the written consent of the Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.
Notification Regarding APO
In the event that the ITC issues a final negative injury determination, this notice will serve as the only reminder to parties subject to an APO of their responsibility concerning the destruction of proprietary information disclosed under APO in accordance with 19 CFR 351.305(a)(3). Timely written notification of return or destruction of APO materials or conversion to judicial protective order is hereby requested. Failure to comply with the regulations and terms of an APO is a violation which is subject to sanction.
Notification to Interested Parties
This determination is issued and published in accordance with sections 735(d) and 777(i)(1) of the Act, and 19 CFR 351.210(c).
Dated: January 18, 2022.
Lisa W. Wang,
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.
Appendix I
Scope of the Investigation
The product covered by this investigation is granular polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) resin. Granular PTFE resin is covered by the scope of this investigation whether filled or unfilled, whether or not modified, and whether or not containing co-polymer, additives, pigments, or other materials. Also included is PTFE wet raw polymer. The chemical formula for granular PTFE resin is C2F4, and the Chemical Abstracts Service (CAS) Registry number is 9002-84-0.
Subject merchandise includes material matching the above description that has been finished, packaged, or otherwise processed in a third country, including by filling, modifying, compounding, packaging with another product, or performing any other finishing, packaging, or processing that would not otherwise remove the merchandise from the scope of the investigation if performed in the country of manufacture of the granular PTFE resin.
The product covered by this investigation does not include dispersion or coagulated dispersion (also known as fine powder) PTFE.
PTFE further processed into micropowder, having particle size typically ranging from 1 to 25 microns, and a melt-flow rate no less than 0.1 gram/10 minutes, is excluded from the scope of this investigation.
Granular PTFE resin is classified in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) under subheading 3904.61.0010. Subject merchandise may also be classified under HTSUS subheading 3904.69.5000. Although the HTSUS subheadings and CAS Number are provided for convenience and customs purposes, the written description of the scope is dispositive.
Appendix II
List of Topics Discussed in the Issues and Decision Memorandum
I. Summary
II. Background
III. Discussion of the Issues
Comment 1: Whether HaloPolymer Failed to Report Complete Costs and Whether Adverse Facts Available (AFA) or Facts Available Should Be Applied to Determine HaloPolymer's Costs
Comment 2: Whether HaloPolymer Accurately Reported Price Adjustments
IV. Recommendation
[FR Doc. 2022-01335 Filed 1-24-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P