[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 38 (Monday, February 27, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 10563-10564]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-4728]



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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE.
[A-821-807]


Notice of Amended Preliminary Determination of Sales at Less Than 
Fair Value: Antidumping Duty Investigation of Ferrovanadium and 
Nitrided Vanadium From the Russian Federation

AGENCY: Import Administration, International Trade Administration, 
Commerce.

EFFECTIVE DATE: February 27, 1995.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Louis Apple or David J. Goldberger, 
Office of Antidumping Investigations, Import Administration, 
International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 14th 
Street and Constitution Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C., 20230; 
telephone (202) 482-1769 or (202) 482-4136.

Applicable Statute and Regulations

    Unless otherwise indicated, all citations to the statute and to the 
Department's regulations are references to the provisions as they 
existed on December 31, 1994. References to Antidumping and 
Countervailing Duties: Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Request for 
Public Comments, 57 FR 1131 (January 10, 1992) (Proposed Regulations), 
are provided solely for further explanation of the Department's AD 
practice with respect to amended preliminary determinations. Although, 
the Department has withdrawn the particular rulemaking proceeding 
pursuant to which the Proposed Regulations were issued, the subject 
matter of these regulations is being considered in connection with an 
ongoing rulemaking proceeding which, among other things, is intended to 
conform the Department's regulations to the Uruguay Round Agreements 
Act. See 60 FR 80 (January 3, 1995).

Scope of Investigation

    This investigation covers ferrovanadium and nitrided vanadium. The 
scope is fully described in the preliminary determination.

Case History

    On December 27, 1994, the Department of Commerce (the Department) 
made its affirmative [[Page 10564]] preliminary determination of sales 
at less than fair value in the above-cited investigation (60 FR 438, 
January 4, 1995).
    On January 11, 1995, the petitioner alleged that the Department 
made a significant ministerial error in the preliminary determination 
in the above-mentioned investigation and requested that the Department 
correct this ministerial error accordingly.
    In its submission, the petitioner alleged that the Department made 
a ministerial error in its calculation of the foreign market value 
(FMV) for SC Vanadium-Tulachermet (Tulachermet). This FMV was used for 
comparison to sales made by both Tulachermet and Odermet, Ltd. The 
petitioner's allegation deals with the valuation of vanadium slag, the 
principal raw material used to produce the subject merchandise.
    On January 19, 1995, the Department received comments from Odermet, 
Ltd. and Tulachermet in response to the petitioner's January 11, 1995 
letter regarding a ministerial error. Odermet submitted additional 
comments on January 26, 1995. However, standard Department practice 
with respect to preliminary determinations, does ``not permit parties 
to comment on another party's allegations of significant ministerial 
errors''. (See the Department's Proposed Rules 57 FR 1133 (January 10, 
1992). Any party objecting to the Department's amendment, will have the 
opportunity to present its arguments in its administrative case briefs 
and at the hearing.
    On January 23, 1995, the Department determined that the 
petitioner's allegation regarding the ministerial error in our 
calculation of FMV for Tulachermet, requires correction in an amended 
preliminary determination
(See January 23, 1995, Memorandum from Gary Taverman to Barbara R. 
Stafford).
Amendment of Preliminary Determination

    The Department does not normally amend preliminary determinations 
since these determinations are only estimated margins subject to 
verification and may change for the final determination. It is, 
however, the Department's practice to amend preliminary determinations 
in those instances involving a significant ministerial error. (See 
Amendment to Preliminary Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair 
Value: Fresh Cut Roses From Columbia, 59 FR 51554, 51555 (October 12, 
1994) (Roses); and Amendment to Preliminary Determination of Sales at 
Less Than Fair Value: Sweaters Wholly or in Chief Weight of Man-Made 
Fiber from Hong Kong, 55 FR 19289-90 (May 9, 1990)).
    The Department has defined ``significant ministerial errors'' as 
those unintentional errors which result in a change of the estimated 
margin of at least 5 absolute percentage points but not less than 25 
percent of the calculated margin. See Roses. In this case, these 
criteria have been met.
    In its questionnaire response, Tulachermet reported its consumption 
of vanadium slag, the principal input used to produce the intermediate 
product vanadium pentoxide, on the basis of net vanadium content. The 
Department used as a surrogate value a price quote for vanadium slag 
expressed in terms of net vanadium pentoxide content. The petitioner 
alleges that the Department made a significant ministerial error in not 
converting the consumption factor or surrogate value to reflect the 
different basis of the surrogate value to the factor consumed.
    The Department agrees with petitioner that the reported factor 
should have been adjusted to a vanadium pentoxide basis. The Department 
did not intend to apply a surrogate value to consumption factor 
expressed in an incompatible unit of measure. Furthermore, correcting 
this ministerial error will result in a change in the estimated margin 
of greater than 5 absolute percentage points and greater than 25 
percent of the original estimated margin. Therefore, pursuant to the 
Department's practice, the error constitutes a significant ministerial 
error and the Department is amending the preliminary determination 
accordingly. The calculations have been corrected by applying the 
methodology from the petition for converting the consumption factor for 
vanadium slag from units of net vanadium content to units of net 
vanadium pentoxide content. The recalculation affects the margin 
percentage for Tulachermet, Odermet, and the all others rate for non-
Russian exporters.

Suspension of Liquidation

    In accordance with section 733(d)(2) of the Act, the Department 
will direct the U.S. Customs Service to continue to require cash 
deposit or posting of bond on all entries of subject merchandise from 
the Russian Federation at the newly calculated rates, that are entered, 
or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after the date of 
the original preliminary determination publication notice in the 
Federal Register (60 FR 438, January 4, 1995). The suspension-of-
liquidation will remain in effect until further notice.
    The revised estimated margins are as follows:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                Weighted
                                                                average 
                Manufacturer/Producer/Exporter                   margin 
                                                                percent 
------------------------------------------------------------------------
All exporters located in Russia including SC Vanadium-                  
 Tulachermet.................................................      94.92
Galt Alloys, Inc.............................................      40.46
Gesellschaft fur Elektrometallurgie m.b.H./Shieldalloy                  
 Metallurgical Corporation/Metallurg, Inc....................      49.18
Marc Rich Co., AG/Glencore International AG..................     108.00
Odermet, Ltd.................................................      60.09
Wogan Resources, Ltd.........................................     108.00
All others not located in Russia.............................      82.29
------------------------------------------------------------------------

ITC Notification

    In accordance with section 733(f) of the Act, we have notified the 
International Trade Commission (ITC) of the amended preliminary 
determination. If our final determination is affirmative, the ITC will 
determine whether imports of the subject merchandise are materially 
injuring, or threaten material injury to, the U.S. industry, before the 
later of 120 days after the date of the original preliminary 
determination (December 27, 1995) or 45 days after our final 
determination.

Public Comment

    Public hearings in this proceeding will be held to afford 
interested parties an opportunity to comment on arguments raised in 
case or rebuttal briefs. The tentative schedule for the case briefs, 
rebuttal briefs, and hearings for this proceeding is described in the 
preliminary determination. We will make our final determination by May 
19, 1995.

    Dated: February 17, 1995.
Susan G. Esserman,
Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.
[FR Doc. 95-4728 Filed 2-24-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P