[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 66 (Wednesday, April 7, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 17692-17693]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-7883]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Foreign-Trade Zones Board
[Docket 51-2008]
Foreign-Trade Zone 82; Application for Subzone Authority;
ThyssenKrupp Steel and Stainless USA, LLC; Invitation for Public
Comment on Preliminary Recommendation
The FTZ Board is inviting public comment on its staff's preliminary
recommendation pertaining to the application by the City of Mobile,
grantee of FTZ 82, to establish a subzone at the ThyssenKrupp Steel and
Stainless USA, LLC (ThyssenKrupp) facility in Calvert, Alabama. The
staff's preliminary recommendation is for approval of the application
with a restriction limiting the FTZ benefits to ThyssenKrupp's
production for export. The bases for this finding are as follows:
Analysis of the application record indicates that full approval of
the ThyssenKrupp application could have a negative impact on domestic
raw material suppliers as well as other domestic steel producers.
Regarding raw material suppliers, while there may not be sufficient
quantities available from domestic sources for all raw materials
proposed in the application, significant U.S. production remains of
several key materials. Unrestricted use of FTZ procedures in the steel
industry could harm certain domestic raw material producers if cost
savings are provided for imported materials used in ThyssenKrupp's
production for the U.S. market.
As to impact on other domestic steel producers, while ordinarily
all companies in an industry would have an equal opportunity to use FTZ
procedures for their operations, the structure of many existing U.S.
steel plants could make those companies' use of FTZ procedures overly
complicated and costly. Unlike the ThyssenKrupp plant, many existing
facilities are ``mini-mills'' and have less integration at a single
site. Product may move between several facilities during the
manufacturing process. This structure would require FTZ applications,
CBP activations, and bonds to be done separately for each facility,
whereas ThyssenKrupp will only face those burdens (and costs) once due
to the nature of its Alabama facility.
In addition, ThyssenKrupp will be sourcing the ``slab'' for its
carbon steel operations from Brazil, and will be shipping some
stainless steel production to Mexico for certain cold-rolling
operations. Other domestic producers conduct such operations in
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the United States, creating higher levels of U.S. activity and
employment. As a result, in combination with the other factors cited
above, unrestricted FTZ authority for ThyssenKrupp could provide cost
savings that would not be equally available to other domestic producers
that have higher overall U.S. value added.
At the same time, the ThyssenKrupp facility in Alabama will be
competing with other ThyssenKrupp plants abroad for production destined
for markets elsewhere in North and South America and beyond. FTZ
savings for the Alabama facility's export production could enhance its
competitiveness in the world market.
Public comment on the preliminary recommendation and the bases for
the finding is invited through May 14, 2010. Rebuttal comments may be
submitted during the subsequent 15-day period, until June 1, 2010.
Submissions (original and one electronic copy) shall be addressed to
the Board's Executive Secretary at: Foreign-Trade Zones Board, U.S.
Department of Commerce, Room 2111, 1401 Constitution Ave., NW.,
Washington, DC 20230.
For further information, contact Elizabeth Whiteman at
[email protected] or (202) 482-0473.
Dated: March 30, 2010.
Andrew McGilvray,
Executive Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2010-7883 Filed 4-6-10; 8:45 am]
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