[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 30 (Tuesday, February 16, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 7745-7749]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-03071]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
[C-570-037]
Certain Biaxial Integral Geogrid Products From the People's
Republic of China: Initiation of Countervailing Duty Investigation
AGENCY: Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration,
Department of Commerce.
DATES: Effective date: February 16, 2016.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kabir Archuletta, AD/CVD Operations,
Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, U.S.
Department of Commerce, 14th Street and Constitution Avenue NW.,
Washington, DC 20230; telephone: 202.482.2593.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
The Petition
On January 13, 2016, the Department of Commerce (the
``Department'') received a countervailing duty (``CVD'') petition
concerning imports of certain biaxial integral geogrid products
(``geogrids'') from the People's Republic of China (``PRC''), filed in
proper form by Tensar Corporation (``Petitioner''), a domestic producer
of geogrids. The CVD petition was accompanied by an antidumping duty
(``AD'') petition concerning imports of geogrids from the PRC.\1\ On
January 15, and January 21, 2016, the Department issued additional
requests for information and clarification of certain areas of the
Petition. Based on the Department's requests, Petitioner timely filed
additional information pertaining to the Petition on January 20, and
27, 2016.\2\
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\1\ See the Petitions for the Imposition of Antidumping Duties
and Countervailing Duties: Certain Biaxial Integral Geogrid Products
from the People's Republic of China, dated January 13, 2016 (``the
Petition'').
\2\ See Petitioner's January 20 and 27, 2016, responses.
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In accordance with section 702(b)(1) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as
amended (the ``Act''), Petitioner alleges that producers/exporters of
geogrids in the PRC received countervailable subsidies within the
meaning of sections 701 and 771(5) of the Act, and that imports from
these producers/exporters materially injure, or threaten material
injury to, an industry in the United States.
The Department finds that Petitioner filed this Petition on behalf
of the domestic industry because it is an interested party as defined
in section 771(9)(C) of the Act, and Petitioner has demonstrated
sufficient industry
[[Page 7746]]
support with respect to the CVD investigation that it is requesting the
Department to initiate.\3\
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\3\ See ``Determination of Industry Support for the Petition''
below.
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Furthermore, the Department has exercised its discretion to toll
deadlines as a result of the closure of the Federal Government during
Snowstorm ``Jonas.'' \4\ Therefore, the initiation date for this
investigation has been tolled by 4 business days.
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\4\ See Memorandum for the Record from Ron Lorentzen, Acting
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance, ``Tolling of
Administrative Deadlines as a Result of the Government Closure
during Snowstorm `Jonas,' '' (January 27, 2016).
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Period of Investigation
The period of investigation (``POI'') is calendar year 2015, in
accordance with 19 CFR 351.204(b)(2).
Scope of the Investigation
The product covered by this investigation is geogrids from the PRC.
For a full description of the scope of the investigation, see the
``Scope of the Investigation'' at the Appendix of this notice.
Comments on the Scope of the Investigation
During our review of the Petition, we solicited information from
Petitioner to ensure that the proposed scope language is an accurate
reflection of the products for which the domestic industry is seeking
relief. Moreover, as discussed in the preamble to the Department's
regulations,\5\ we are setting aside a period for interested parties to
raise issues regarding product coverage. If scope comments include
factual information,\6\ all such factual information should be limited
to public information. The Department encourages all interested parties
to submit such comments by 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time (``ET'') on February
29, 2016, which is 20 calendar days from the signature date of this
notice.\7\ Any rebuttal comments, which may include factual
information, must be filed by 5:00 p.m. ET on March 10, 2016, which is
10 calendar days after the initial comments.
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\5\ See Antidumping Duties; Countervailing Duties; Final Rule,
62 FR 27296, 27323 (May 19, 1997).
\6\ See 19 CFR 351.102(b)(21).
\7\ The 20th day falls on February 28, 2016. As this is a
Sunday, we are applying our Next Business Day Rule. See Notice of
Clarification: Application of ``Next Business Day'' Rule for
Administrative Determination Deadlines Pursuant to the Tariff Act of
1930, As Amended, 70 FR24533 (May 10, 2005).
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The Department requests that any factual information the parties
consider relevant to the scope of the investigation be submitted during
this time period. However, if a party subsequently finds that
additional factual information pertaining to the scope of the
investigation may be relevant, the party may contact the Department and
request permission to submit the additional information. All such
comments must be filed on the record of the concurrent AD
investigation.
Filing Requirements
All submissions to the Department must be filed electronically
using Enforcement and Compliance's Antidumping and Countervailing Duty
Centralized Electronic Service System (``ACCESS''). An electronically
filed document must be received successfully in its entirety by the
Department's electronic records system, ACCESS, by the time and date
set by the Department. Documents excepted from the electronic
submission requirements must be filed manually (i.e., in paper form)
with Enforcement and Compliance's APO/Dockets Unit, Room 18022, U.S.
Department of Commerce, 14th Street and Constitution Avenue NW.,
Washington, DC 20230, and stamped with the date and time of receipt by
the deadline established by the Department.
Consultations
Pursuant to section 702(b)(4)(A)(i) of the Act, the Department
notified representatives of the Government of China (GOC) of the
receipt of the Petition. Also, in accordance with section
702(b)(4)(A)(ii) of the Act, the Department provided representatives of
the GOC the opportunity for consultations with respect to the CVD
petition. The GOC did not accept our invitation to hold consultations
before the initiation.\8\
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\8\ See Letter to Liu Fang, First Secretary, Embassy of the
People's Republic of China, re: ``Countervailing Duty Petition on
Certain Biaxial Integral Geogrid Products from the People's Republic
of China: Invitation for Consultations to Discuss the Countervailing
Duty Petition,'' dated January 14, 2016.
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Determination of Industry Support for the Petition
Section 702(b)(1) of the Act requires that a petition be filed on
behalf of the domestic industry. Section 702(c)(4)(A) of the Act
provides that a petition meets this requirement if the domestic
producers or workers who support the petition account for: (i) At least
25 percent of the total production of the domestic like product; and
(ii) more than 50 percent of the production of the domestic like
product produced by that portion of the industry expressing support
for, or opposition to, the petition. Moreover, section 702(c)(4)(D) of
the Act provides that, if the petition does not establish support of
domestic producers or workers accounting for more than 50 percent of
the total production of the domestic like product, the Department
shall: (i) Poll the industry or rely on other information in order to
determine if there is support for the petition, as required by
subparagraph (A); or (ii) determine industry support using a
statistically valid sampling method to poll the ``industry.''
Section 771(4)(A) of the Act defines the ``industry'' as the
producers as a whole of a domestic like product. Thus, to determine
whether a petition has the requisite industry support, the statute
directs the Department to look to producers and workers who produce the
domestic like product. The International Trade Commission (``ITC''),
which is responsible for determining whether ``the domestic industry''
has been injured, must also determine what constitutes a domestic like
product in order to define the industry. While both the Department and
the ITC must apply the same statutory definition regarding the domestic
like product,\9\ they do so for different purposes and pursuant to a
separate and distinct authority. In addition, the Department's
determination is subject to limitations of time and information.
Although this may result in different definitions of the like product,
such differences do not render the decision of either agency contrary
to law.\10\
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\9\ See section 771(10) of the Act.
\10\ See USEC, Inc. v. United States, 132 F. Supp. 2d 1, 8 (CIT
2001) (citing Algoma Steel Corp., Ltd. v. United States, 688 F.
Supp. 639, 644 (CIT 1988), aff'd 865 F.2d 240 (Fed. Cir. 1989)).
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Section 771(10) of the Act defines the domestic like product as ``a
product which is like, or in the absence of like, most similar in
characteristics and uses with, the article subject to an investigation
under this title.'' Thus, the reference point from which the domestic
like product analysis begins is ``the article subject to an
investigation'' (i.e., the class or kind of merchandise to be
investigated, which normally will be the scope as defined in the
Petition).
With regard to the domestic like product, Petitioner does not offer
a definition of the domestic like product distinct from the scope of
the investigation. Based on our analysis of the information submitted
on the record, we have determined that geogrids, as defined in the
scope, constitute a single domestic like product and we have analyzed
industry support in terms of that domestic like product.\11\
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\11\ For a discussion of the domestic like product analysis in
this case, see Countervailing Duty Investigation Initiation
Checklist: Certain Biaxial Integral Geogrid Products from the
People's Republic of China (``PRC CVD Initiation Checklist''), at
Attachment II, Analysis of Industry Support for the Antidumping and
Countervailing Duty Petitions Covering Certain Biaxial Integral
Geogrid Products from the People's Republic of China (``Attachment
II''). This checklist is dated concurrently with this notice and on
file electronically via ACCESS. Access to documents filed via ACCESS
is also available in the Central Records Unit, Room B8024 of the
main Department of Commerce building.
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[[Page 7747]]
In determining whether Petitioner has standing under section
702(c)(4)(A) of the Act, we considered the industry support data
contained in the Petition with reference to the domestic like product
as defined in the ``Scope of the Investigation,'' in Appendix I of this
notice. To establish industry support, Petitioner provided its own
production of the domestic like product in 2015.\12\ On February 1,
2016, we received a letter from the only other known U.S. producer of
geogrids, Tenax Corporation (``Tenax''), stating that the company
supports the Petition.\13\ Tenax also provided its own production of
the domestic like product in 2015.\14\ Petitioner states that, based on
reasonably available information regarding the U.S. geogrids industry,
there are no other known producers of geogrids in the United States;
therefore, the Petition is supported by 100 percent of the U.S.
industry.\15\
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\12\ See General Issues Supplement, at 13.
\13\ See Letter from Tenax Corporation, dated January 28, 2016.
We note that, although this letter is dated January 28, 2016, it was
filed after 5:00 p.m. on January 29, 2016 (via ACCESS); therefore,
we consider it received on the next business day (February 1, 2016).
\14\ See Letter from Tenax Corporation, dated January 28, 2016.
\15\ See Volume I of the Petition, at 2-15 and Exhibits I-1
through I-4, I-6 through I-34, I-44, and I-52 through I-58; see also
Letter from Tenax Corporation, dated February 1, 2016, at 1.
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Our review of the data provided in the Petition, General Issues
Supplement, letters from Tenax, and other information readily available
to the Department indicates that Petitioner has established industry
support.\16\ First, the Petition established support from domestic
producers (or workers) accounting for more than 50 percent of the total
production of the domestic like product and, as such, the Department is
not required to take further action in order to evaluate industry
support (e.g., polling).\17\ Second, the domestic producers (or
workers) have met the statutory criteria for industry support under
section 702(c)(4)(A)(i) of the Act because the domestic producers (or
workers) who support the Petition account for at least 25 percent of
the total production of the domestic like product.\18\ Finally, the
domestic producers (or workers) have met the statutory criteria for
industry support under section 702(c)(4)(A)(ii) of the Act because the
domestic producers (or workers) who support the Petition account for
more than 50 percent of the production of the domestic like product
produced by that portion of the industry expressing support for, or
opposition to, the Petition.\19\ Accordingly, the Department determines
that the Petition was filed on behalf of the domestic industry within
the meaning of section 702(b)(1) of the Act.
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\16\ See PRC CVD Initiation Checklist, at Attachment II.
\17\ See section 702(c)(4)(D) of the Act; see also PRC CVD
Initiation Checklist, at Attachment II.
\18\ See PRC CVD Initiation Checklist, at Attachment II.
\19\ Id.
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The Department finds that Petitioner filed the Petition on behalf
of the domestic industry because it is an interested party as defined
in section 771(9)(C) of the Act and it has demonstrated sufficient
industry support with respect to the CVD investigation that it is
requesting the Department initiate.\20\
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\20\ Id.
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Injury Test
Because the PRC is a ``Subsidies Agreement Country'' within the
meaning of section 701(b) of the Act, section 701(a)(2) of the Act
applies to this investigation. Accordingly, the ITC must determine
whether imports of the subject merchandise from the PRC materially
injure, or threaten material injury to, a U.S. industry.
Allegations and Evidence of Material Injury and Causation
Petitioner alleges that imports of the subject merchandise are
benefitting from countervailable subsidies and that such imports are
causing, or threaten to cause, material injury to the U.S. industry
producing the domestic like product. In addition, Petitioner alleges
that subject imports exceed the negligibility threshold provided for
under section 771(24)(A) of the Act.\21\
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\21\ See Volume I of the Petition, at 34 and Exhibit I-4; see
also General Issues Supplement, at 19.
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Petitioner contends that the industry's injured condition is
illustrated by reduced market share; underselling and price suppression
or depression; negative impact on the domestic industry's performance,
including capacity utilization, shipments, and operating income; and
lost sales and revenues.\22\ We have assessed the allegations and
supporting evidence regarding material injury, threat of material
injury, and causation, and we have determined that these allegations
are properly supported by adequate evidence and meet the statutory
requirements for initiation.\23\
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\22\ See Volume I of the Petition, at 24-28, 32-45 and Exhibits
I-4, I-35, I-39 through I-43, I-47, I-50, and I-51; see also General
Issues Supplement, at 13-24 and Exhibits Supp. I-1 through I-5, I-10
through I-12, and I-43.
\23\ See PRC CVD Initiation Checklist, at Attachment III,
Analysis of Allegations and Evidence of Material Injury and
Causation for the Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Petitions
Covering Certain Biaxial Integral Geogrid Products from the People's
Republic of China.
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Initiation of Countervailing Duty Investigation
Section 702(b)(1) of the Act requires the Department to initiate a
CVD proceeding whenever an interested party files a CVD petition on
behalf of an industry that: (1) Alleges the elements necessary for an
imposition of a duty under section 701(a) of the Act; and (2) is
accompanied by information reasonably available to the Petitioner
supporting the allegations.
The Department has examined the Petition on geogrids from the PRC
and finds that it complies with the requirements of section 702(b)(1)
of the Act. Therefore, in accordance with section 702(b)(1) of the Act,
we are initiating a CVD investigation to determine whether producers/
exporters of geogrids in the PRC receive countervailable subsidies. For
a discussion of evidence supporting our initiation determination, see
the CVD Initiation Checklist which accompanies this notice.
Based on our review of the Petition, we find that there is
sufficient information to initiate a CVD investigation of 32 of the
alleged programs, and part of two additional alleged programs. For six
of the programs alleged by Petitioner, we have determined that the
requirements for initiation have not been met. For a full discussion of
the basis for our decision to initiate or not initiate on each program,
see the CVD Initiation Checklist.
Respondent Selection
The Department normally selects respondents in a CVD investigation
using CBP entry data. However, for this investigation, the HTSUS
numbers the subject merchandise would enter under, 3926.90.9995,
3920.20.0050, and 3925.90.0000, are basket categories containing many
products unrelated to geogrids, and much of the reported entry data do
not contain quantity information. Therefore, we cannot rely on CBP
entry data in selecting respondents. Instead, we intend to issue
quantity and value (``Q&V'')
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questionnaires to each potential respondent, for which the Petitioner
has provided a complete address,\24\ and base respondent selection on
the responses received. In addition, the Department will post the Q&V
questionnaire along with the filing instructions on the Enforcement and
Compliance Web site (http://trade.gov/enforcement/news.asp). Exporters
and producers that do not receive Q&V questionnaires via mail may still
submit a Q&V response, and can obtain a copy from the Enforcement and
Compliance Web site. The Q&V questionnaire must be submitted by all PRC
exporters/producers no later than February 22, 2016.
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\24\ See Volume I of the Petition at Exhibit I-37.
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All Q&V responses must be filed electronically via ACCESS. An
electronically-filed document must be received successfully in its
entirety by ACCESS, by 5 p.m. ET by the date noted above. We intend to
make our decision regarding respondent selection within 20 days of
publication of this Federal Register notice. Interested parties must
submit applications for disclosure under APO in accordance with 19 CFR
351.305(b). Instructions for filing such applications may be found on
the Department's Web site at http://enforcement.trade.gov/apo.
Distribution of Copies of the CVD Petition
In accordance with section 702(b)(4)(A)(i) of the Act and 19 CFR
351.202(f), we have provided a copy of the public version of the
Petition to the representatives of the GOC. Because of the particularly
large number of producers/exporters identified in the Petition, the
Department considers the service of the public version of the petition
to the foreign producers/exporters satisfied by the delivery of the
public version to the GOC, consistent with 19 CFR 351.203(c)(2).
ITC Notification
We have notified the ITC of our initiation, as required by section
702(d) of the Act.
Preliminary Determination by the ITC
The ITC will preliminarily determine, within 45 days after the date
on which the Petition was filed, whether there is a reasonable
indication that imports of geogrids from the PRC materially injure, or
threaten material injury to, a U.S. industry.\25\ A negative ITC
determination will result in the investigation being terminated.\26\
Otherwise, the investigation will proceed according to statutory and
regulatory time limits.
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\25\ See section 703(a)(2) of the Act.
\26\ See section 703(a)(1) of the Act.
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Submission of Factual Information
Factual information is defined in 19 CFR 351.102(b)(21) as: (i)
Evidence submitted in response to questionnaires; (ii) evidence
submitted in support of allegations; (iii) publicly available
information to value factors under 19 CFR 351.408(c) or to measure the
adequacy of remuneration under 19 CFR 351.511(a)(2); (iv) evidence
placed on the record by the Department; and (v) evidence other than
factual information described in (i)-(iv). The regulation requires any
party, when submitting factual information, to specify under which
subsection of 19 CFR 351.102(b)(21) the information is being submitted
and, if the information is submitted to rebut, clarify, or correct
factual information already on the record, to provide an explanation
identifying the information already on the record that the factual
information seeks to rebut, clarify, or correct. Time limits for the
submission of factual information are addressed in 19 CFR 351.301,
which provides specific time limits based on the type of factual
information being submitted. Parties should review the regulations
prior to submitting factual information in this investigation.
Extension of Time Limits
Parties may request an extension of time limits before the
expiration of a time limit established under 19 CFR 351.301, or as
otherwise specified by the Secretary. In general, an extension request
will be considered untimely if it is filed after the expiration of the
time limit established under 19 CFR 351.301 expires. For submissions
that are due from multiple parties simultaneously, an extension request
will be considered untimely if it is filed after 10:00 a.m. on the due
date. Under certain circumstances, we may elect to specify a different
time limit by which extension requests will be considered untimely for
submissions which are due from multiple parties simultaneously. In such
a case, we will inform parties in the letter or memorandum setting
forth the deadline (including a specified time) by which extension
requests must be filed to be considered timely. An extension request
must be made in a separate, stand-alone submission; under limited
circumstances we will grant untimely-filed requests for the extension
of time limits. Review Extension of Time Limits; Final Rule, 78 FR
57790 (September 20, 2013), available at http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2013-09-20/html/2013-22853.htm, prior to submitting factual
information in this investigation.
Certification Requirements
Any party submitting factual information in an AD or CVD proceeding
must certify to the accuracy and completeness of that information.\27\
Parties are hereby reminded that the Department issued a final rule
with respect to certification requirements, effective August 16, 2013,
and that the revised certification requirements are in effect for
company/government officials as well as their representatives. All
segments of any AD or CVD proceedings initiated on or after August 16,
2013, including this investigation, should use the formats for the
revised certifications provided at the end of the Certifications Final
Rule.\28\ The Department intends to reject factual submissions if the
submitting party does not comply with the applicable revised
certification requirements.
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\27\ See section 782(b) of the Act.
\28\ See Certification of Factual Information To Import
Administration During Antidumping and Countervailing Duty
Proceedings, 78 FR 42678 (July 17, 2013) (``Certifications Final
Rule''); see also the frequently asked questions regarding the
Certifications Final Rule, available at the following: http://enforcement.trade.gov/tlei/notices/factual_info_final_rule_FAQ_07172013.pdf.
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Notification to Interested Parties
Interested parties must submit applications for disclosure under
administrative protective order in accordance with 19 CFR 351.305(b).
Instructions for filing such applications may be found on the
Department's Web site at http://enforcement.trade.gov/apo/index.html.
This notice is issued and published pursuant to section 777(i) of
the Act and 19 CFR 351.203(c).
Dated: February 8, 2016.
Paul Piquado,
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.
Appendix
Scope of the Investigation
The merchandise covered by the investigation is certain biaxial
integral geogrid products. Biaxial integral geogrid products are a
polymer grid or mesh material (whether or not finished, slit, cut-
to-length, attached to woven or non-woven fabric or sheet material,
or packaged) in which four-sided openings in the form of squares,
rectangles, rhomboids, diamonds, or other four-sided figures
predominate. The products covered have integral strands that have
been stretched to induce molecular orientation into the material (as
evidenced by the strands being thinner toward the middle between the
junctions than at the junctions themselves)
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constituting the sides of the openings and integral junctions where
the strands intersect. The scope includes products in which four-
sided figures predominate whether or not they also contain
additional strands intersecting the four-sided figures and whether
or not the inside corners of the four-sided figures are rounded off
or not sharp angles. As used herein, the term ``integral'' refers to
strands and junctions that are homogenous with each other. The
products covered have a tensile strength of greater than 5
kilonewtons per meter (``kN/m'') according to American Society for
Testing and Materials (``ASTM'') Standard Test Method D6637/D6637M
in any direction and average overall flexural stiffness of more than
100,000 milligram-centimeter according to the ASTM D7748/D7748M
Standard Test Method for Flexural Rigidity of Geogrids, Geotextiles
and Related Products, or other equivalent test method standards.
Subject merchandise includes material matching the above
description that has been finished, packaged, or otherwise further
processed in a third country, including by trimming, slitting,
coating, cutting, punching holes, stretching, attaching to woven or
non-woven fabric or sheet material, or any other finishing,
packaging, or other further processing that would not otherwise
remove the merchandise from the scope of the investigation if
performed in the country of manufacture of the biaxial integral
geogrid.
The products subject to the scope are currently classified in
the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (``HTSUS'')
under the following subheading: 3926.90.9995. Subject merchandise
may also enter under subheadings 3920.20.0050 and 3925.90.0000. The
HTSUS subheadings set forth above are provided for convenience and
U.S. Customs purposes only. The written description of the scope is
dispositive.
[FR Doc. 2016-03071 Filed 2-12-16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P