[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 200 (Thursday, October 15, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 65386-65389]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-22819]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
[A-428-849]
Common Alloy Aluminum Sheet From Germany: Preliminary Affirmative
Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value, Postponement of Final
Determination, and Extension of Provisional Measures
AGENCY: Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration,
Department of Commerce.
SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily determines
that common alloy aluminum sheet (aluminum sheet) from Germany is
being, or is likely to be, sold in the United States at less than fair
value (LTFV). The period of investigation is January 1, 2019 through
December 31, 2019. Interested parties are invited to comment on this
preliminary determination.
DATES: Applicable October 15, 2020.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jonathan Hill or Thomas Hanna, AD/CVD
Operations, Office IV, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade
Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue
NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-3518 or (202) 482-0835,
respectively.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
This preliminary determination is made in accordance with section
733(b) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act). Commerce
published the notice of initiation of this investigation on April 7,
2020.\1\ On July 29, 2020, Commerce postponed the preliminary
determination of this investigation and the revised deadline is now
October 6, 2020.\2\ For a complete description of the events that
followed the initiation of this investigation, see the Preliminary
Decision Memorandum.\3\ A list of topics
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included in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum is included as Appendix
II to this notice. The Preliminary 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 Preliminary
Decision Memorandum can be accessed directly at http://enforcement.trade.gov/frn/. The signed and the electronic versions of
the Preliminary Decision Memorandum are identical in content.
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\1\ See Common Alloy Aluminum Sheet From Bahrain, Brazil,
Croatia, Egypt, Germany, Greece, India, Indonesia, Italy, Republic
of Korea, Oman, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain,
Taiwan and the Republic of Turkey: Initiation of Less-Than-Fair-
Value Investigations, 85 FR 19445 (April 7, 2020) (Initiation
Notice).
\2\ See Common Alloy Aluminum Sheet from Bahrain, Brazil,
Croatia, Egypt, Germany, Greece, India, Indonesia, Italy, Republic
of Korea, Oman, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain,
Taiwan, and the Republic of Turkey: Postponement of Preliminary
Determinations in the Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigations, 85 FR
45576 (July 29, 2020).
\3\ See Memorandum, ``Decision Memorandum for the Preliminary
Determination in the Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigation of Common
Alloy Aluminum Sheet from Germany,'' dated concurrently with, and
hereby adopted by, this notice (Preliminary Decision Memorandum).
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Scope of the Investigation
The products covered by this investigation are aluminum sheet from
Germany. For a complete description of the scope of this investigation,
see Appendix I.
Scope Comments
In accordance with the preamble to Commerce's regulations,\4\ the
Initiation Notice set aside a period of time for parties to raise
issues regarding product coverage (i.e., scope).\5\ Certain interested
parties commented on the scope of the investigation as it appeared in
the Initiation Notice. For a summary of the product coverage comments
and rebuttal responses submitted to the record for this preliminary
determination, and accompanying discussion and analysis of all comments
timely received, see the Preliminary Scope Decision Memorandum.\6\
Commerce is preliminarily modifying the scope language as it appeared
in the Initiation Notice. See the revised scope in Appendix I to this
notice.
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\4\ See Antidumping Duties; Countervailing Duties, Final Rule,
62 FR 27296, 27323 (May 19, 1997).
\5\ See Initiation Notice.
\6\ See Memorandum, ``Common Alloy Aluminum Sheet from Bahrain,
Brazil, Croatia, Egypt, Germany, Greece, India, Indonesia, Italy,
Republic of Korea, Oman, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, South Africa,
Spain, Taiwan, and Turkey: Scope Comments Decision Memorandum for
the Preliminary Determinations,'' dated concurrently with this
notice (Preliminary Scope Decision Memorandum).
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Methodology
Commerce is conducting this investigation in accordance with
section 731 of the Act. Commerce has calculated export prices in
accordance with section 772(a) of the Act. Constructed export prices
have been calculated in accordance with section 772(b) of the Act.
Normal value (NV) is calculated in accordance with section 773 of the
Act. Furthermore, pursuant to section 776(a) and (b) of the Act,
Commerce has preliminarily relied upon facts otherwise available, with
adverse inferences, for Hydro Aluminium Rolled Products GmbH (HARP).
For a full description of the methodology underlying the preliminary
determination, see the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.
All-Others Rate
Sections 733(d)(1)(ii) and 735(c)(5)(A) of the Act provide that in
the preliminary determination Commerce shall determine an estimated
all-others rate for all exporters and producers not individually
examined. This rate shall be an amount 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.
In this investigation, Commerce preliminarily assigned a rate based
entirely on facts available to HARP. Therefore, the only rate that is
not zero, de minimis, or based entirely on facts otherwise available is
the rate calculated for Novelis Deutschland GmbH (Novelis).
Consequently, the rate calculated for Novelis is also assigned as the
rate for all other producers and exporters.
Preliminary Determination
Commerce preliminarily determines that the following estimated
weighted-average dumping margins exist:
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\7\ See Memorandum ``Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigation of
Common Alloy Aluminum Sheet from Germany: Preliminary Determination
Analysis Memorandum for Novelis Deutschland GmbH,'' dated
concurrently with this notice.
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Estimated
weighted-
average
Exporter or producer dumping
margin
(percent)
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Hydro Aluminium Rolled Products GmbH........................ 352.71
Novelis Deutschland GmbH.................................... \7\ 51.18
All Others.................................................. 51.18
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Suspension of Liquidation
In accordance with section 733(d)(2) of the Act, Commerce will
direct U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to suspend liquidation
of entries of subject merchandise, as described in Appendix I, entered,
or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after the date of
publication of this notice in the Federal Register. Further, pursuant
to section 733(d)(1)(B) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.205(d), Commerce will
instruct CBP to require a cash deposit equal to the estimated weighted-
average dumping margin or the estimated all-others rate, as follows:
(1) The cash deposit rate for the respondents listed in the table above
will be equal to the company-specific estimated weighted-average
dumping margins determined in this preliminary 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.
Disclosure
Commerce intends to disclose its calculations and analysis
performed to interested parties in this preliminary determination
within five days of any public announcement or, if there is no public
announcement, within five days of the date of publication of this
notice in accordance with 19 CFR 351.224(b).
Verification
Commerce is currently unable to conduct on-site verification of the
information relied upon in making its final determination in this
investigation. Accordingly, we intend to take additional steps in lieu
of on-site verification. Commerce will notify interested parties of any
additional documentation or information required.
Public Comment
Case briefs or other written comments may be submitted to the
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance. A timeline for the
submission of case briefs and written comments on non-scope issues will
be announced at a later date. Rebuttal briefs, limited to issues raised
in case briefs, may be submitted no later than seven days after the
deadline for case briefs.\8\ The deadlines for submitting case and
rebuttal briefs on scope issues are in the Preliminary Scope Decision
Memorandum.\9\ Note that Commerce has temporarily modified certain of
its requirements for serving documents containing business proprietary
[[Page 65388]]
information, until further notice.\10\ Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.309(c)(2)
and (d)(2), parties who submit case briefs or rebuttal briefs in this
investigation are encouraged to submit with each argument: (1) A
statement of the issue; (2) a brief summary of the argument; and (3) a
table of authorities.
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\8\ See 19 CFR 351.309; see also 19 CFR 351.303 (for general
filing requirements).
\9\ See Preliminary Scope Decision Memorandum.
\10\ See Temporary Rule Modifying AD/CVD Service Requirements
Due to COVID-19, 85 FR 17006 (March 26, 2020); and Temporary Rule
Modifying AD/CVD Service Requirements Due to COVID-19; Extension of
Effective Period, 85 FR 41363 (July 10, 2020).
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During the course of this investigation, Commerce collected
information from Novelis and HARP relating to the single entity
treatment of affiliated producers, as well as the single entity
treatment of each mandatory respondent with Aluminum Norf GmbH
(AluNorf), consistent with 19 CFR 351.401(f).\11\ Interested parties
are invited to comment on the application of the criteria in 19 CFR
351.401(f) to Novelis, HARP, and AluNorf, and to Novelis and HARP
individually with AluNorf in their case briefs.
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\11\ See, e.g., Novelis's Letter, ``Common Alloy Aluminum Sheet
from Germany: Novelis Deutschland's GmbH's Section A Supplemental
Questionnaire Response,'' dated August 5, 2020 at 8-14; see also
HARP's Letter, ``Common Alloy Aluminum Sheet from Germany; Section A
Supplemental Response,'' dated August 13, 2020 at 1-6.
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Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.310(c), interested parties who wish to
request a hearing, limited to issues raised in the case and rebuttal
briefs, must submit a written request to the Assistant Secretary for
Enforcement and Compliance, U.S. Department of Commerce, within 30 days
after the date of publication of this notice. Requests should contain
the party's name, address, and telephone number, the number of
participants, whether any participant is a foreign national, and a list
of the issues to be discussed. If a request for a hearing is made,
Commerce intends to hold the hearing at a time and date to be
determined. Parties should confirm by telephone the date and time of
the hearing two days before the scheduled date of the hearing.
Postponement of Final Determination and Extension of Provisional
Measures
Section 735(a)(2) of the Act provides that a final determination
may be postponed until not later than 135 days after the date of the
publication of the preliminary determination if, in the event of an
affirmative preliminary determination, a request for such postponement
is made by exporters who account for a significant proportion of
exports of the subject merchandise, or in the event of a negative
preliminary determination, a request for such postponement is made by
the petitioner. Section 351.210(e)(2) of Commerce's regulations
requires that a request by exporters for postponement of the final
determination be accompanied by a request for extension of provisional
measures from a four-month period to a period not more than six months
in duration.
On September 16 and 18, 2020, pursuant to 19 CFR 351.210(e), HARP
and Novelis, respectively, requested that Commerce postpone the final
determination and that provisional measures be extended to a period not
to exceed six months.\12\ In accordance with section 735(a)(2)(A) of
the Act and 19 CFR 351.210(b)(2)(ii), because: (1) The preliminary
determination is affirmative; (2) the requesting exporters account for
a significant proportion of exports of the subject merchandise; and (3)
no compelling reasons for denial exist, Commerce is postponing the
final determination and extending the provisional measures from a four-
month period to a period not greater than six months. Accordingly,
Commerce will make its final determination no later than 135 days after
the date of publication of this preliminary determination.
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\12\ See Harp's Letter, ``Common Alloy Aluminum Sheet from
Germany; Request to Extend Final Determination,'' dated September
16, 2020; and Novelis's Letter, ``Common Alloy Aluminum Sheet from
Germany: Novelis Deutschland's Request for Postponement of Final
Antidumping Determination,'' dated September 18, 2020.
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International Trade Commission Notification
In accordance with section 733(f) of the Act, Commerce will notify
the International Trade Commission (ITC) of its preliminary
determination. If the final determination is affirmative, the ITC will
determine before the later of 120 days after the date of this
preliminary determination or 45 days after the final determination
whether these imports are materially injuring, or threaten material
injury to, the U.S. industry.
Notification to Interested Parties
This determination is issued and published in accordance with
sections 733(f) and 777(i)(1) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.205(c).
Dated: October 6, 2020.
Jeffrey I. Kessler,
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.
Appendix I
Scope of the Investigation
The products covered by this investigation are common alloy
aluminum sheet, which is a flat-rolled aluminum product having a
thickness of 6.3 mm or less, but greater than 0.2 mm, in coils or
cut-to-length, regardless of width. Common alloy sheet within the
scope of this investigation includes both not clad aluminum sheet,
as well as multi-alloy, clad aluminum sheet. With respect to not
clad aluminum sheet, common alloy sheet is manufactured from a 1XXX-
, 3XXX-, or 5XXX-series alloy as designated by the Aluminum
Association. With respect to multi-alloy, clad aluminum sheet,
common alloy sheet is produced from a 3XXX-series core, to which
cladding layers are applied to either one or both sides of the core.
The use of a proprietary alloy or non-proprietary alloy that is not
specifically registered by the Aluminum Association as a discrete
1XXX-, 3XXX-, or 5XXX-series alloy, but that otherwise has a
chemistry that is consistent with these designations, does not
remove an otherwise in-scope product from the scope.
Common alloy sheet may be made to ASTM specification B209-14 but
can also be made to other specifications. Regardless of
specification, however, all common alloy sheet meeting the scope
description is included in the scope. Subject merchandise includes
common alloy sheet that has been further processed in a third
country, including but not limited to annealing, tempering,
painting, varnishing, trimming, cutting, punching, and/or slitting,
or any other processing that would not otherwise remove the
merchandise from the scope of this investigation if performed in the
country of manufacture of the common alloy sheet.
Excluded from the scope of this investigation is aluminum can
stock, which is suitable for use in the manufacture of aluminum
beverage cans, lids of such cans, or tabs used to open such cans.
Aluminum can stock is produced to gauges that range from 0.200 mm to
0.292 mm, and has an H-19, H-41, H-48, H-39, or H-391 temper. In
addition, aluminum can stock has a lubricant applied to the flat
surfaces of the can stock to facilitate its movement through
machines used in the manufacture of beverage cans. Aluminum can
stock is properly classified under Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the
United States (HTSUS) subheadings 7606.12.3045 and 7606.12.3055.
Where the nominal and actual measurements vary, a product is
within the scope if application of either the nominal or actual
measurement would place it within the scope based on the definitions
set for the above.
Common alloy sheet is currently classifiable under HTSUS
subheadings 7606.11.3060, 7606.11.6000, 7606.12.3096, 7606.12.6000,
7606.91.3095, 7606.91.6095, 7606.92.3035, and 7606.92.6095. Further,
merchandise that falls within the scope of this investigation may
also be entered into
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the United States under HTSUS subheadings 7606.11.3030,
7606.12.3015, 7606.12.3025, 7606.12.3035, 7606.12.3091,
7606.91.3055, 7606.91.6055, 7606.92.3025, 7606.92.6055,
7607.11.9090. Although the HTSUS subheadings are provided for
convenience and customs purposes, the written description of the
scope of this investigation is dispositive.
Appendix II
List of Topics Discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum
I. Summary
II. Background
III. Period of Investigation
IV. Scope of the Investigation
V. Scope Comments
VI. Applications of Facts Available and Use of Adverse Inference
VII. Discussion of the Methodology
VIII. Currency Conversion
IX. Recommendation
[FR Doc. 2020-22819 Filed 10-14-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P