[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 66 (Tuesday, April 7, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 16973-16974]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-9093]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration
[A-834-802, A-835-802]


Agreement Suspending the Antidumping Investigation on Uranium 
from Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan

AGENCY: Import Administration, International Trade Administration, U.S. 
Department of Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of Price Determination on Uranium from Kazakhstan and 
Kyrgyzstan.

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SUMMARY: Pursuant to Section IV.C.1. of the agreements suspending the 
antidumping investigation on uranium from Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, as 
amended, (antidumping suspension agreement on uranium from Kazakhstan 
and Kyrgyzstan), the Department of Commerce (the Department) calculated 
a price for uranium of $11.76/pound of U3O8 for 
the relevant period, as appropriate.1 Under Section IV.A, 
exports from Kazakhstan to the U.S. are subject to quotas determined 
based on price levels as outlined in Appendix A. On the basis of this 
price and Appendix A of the suspension agreement with Kazakhstan, there 
is no quota for uranium from Kazakhstan for the period April 1, 1998, 
through September 30, 1998.
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    \1\ Section IV.A. of the agreement with Uzbekistan calls for a 
quota allocation that is tied to U.S. Production of 
U3O8. Pursuant to such provision, the quota 
for the current relevant period for Uzbekistan, October 13, 1997-
October 12, 1998, has been announced separately in the letter, 
Production-Based Quota Methodology for Uzbekistan, dated October 10, 
1997 in accordance with Section IV.A of that agreement.

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EFFECTIVE DATE: April 1, 1998.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Letitia Kress or Jim Doyle, Office of 
Antidumping Countervailing Duty Enforcement--Group III, Import 
Administration, International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of 
Commerce, 14th Street & Constitution Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20230; 
telephone: (202) 482-6412 or (202) 482-0159, respectively.

Price Calculation

Background

    Section IV.C.1. of the antidumping suspension agreements on uranium 
from Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan specifies that the Department will issue 
its determined market price on April 1, 1997, and use it to determine 
the quota applicable to imports from Kazakhstan during the period April 
1, 1998, to September 30, 1998. Consistent with the February 22, 1993 
letter of

[[Page 16974]]

interpretation, the Department provided interested parties with the 
preliminary price determination on March 20, 1998.

Calculation Summary

    Section IV.C.1. of these agreements specifies how the components of 
the market price are reached. In order to determine the spot market 
price, the Department calculated a simple average utilizing the monthly 
average of the Uranium Price Information System Spot Price Indicator 
(UPIS SPI) and the weekly average of the Uranium Exchange Spot Price 
(Ux Spot). In order to determine the long-term market price, the 
Department calculated a simple average utilizing the weighted-average 
long-term price as determined by the Department (see explanation below) 
on the basis of information provided by market participants (market 
study) and a simple average of the UPIS U.S. Base Price for the months 
in which there were new contracts reported.
    With regard to the market study, the Department's letters to market 
participants provided a contract summary sheet and directions 
requesting the submitter to report his/her best estimate of the future 
price of merchandise to be delivered in accordance with the contract 
delivery schedules (in U.S. dollars per pound 
U3O8 equivalent). Using the information reported 
in the market study's proprietary summary sheets, the Department 
calculated the present value of the prices reported for any future 
deliveries assuming an annual inflation rate of 2.30 percent. The 
inflation rate was derived from a rolling average of the annual Gross 
Domestic Product Implicit Price Deflator index from the past four 
years. The Department then calculated weight-averaged annual price 
factors according to the specified nominal delivery volumes for each 
delivery year. These factors are summed to arrive at the long-term 
price by reported contract. These contract prices are then weight-
averaged together to determine one overall long-term contract price for 
the market study component. The Department then calculated a simple 
average of the market study long-term contract price UPIS U.S. Base 
Price.

Weighting

    The Department used the average spot and long-term volumes of U.S. 
utility and domestic supplier purchases, as reported by the Energy 
Information Administration (EIA), to weight the calculated spot and 
long-term components of the observed price. In this instance, we have 
used purchase data from the period 1993-1996. During this period, the 
spot market accounted for 79.31 percent of total purchases, and the 
long-term market for 20.69 percent.
    As in previous determinations, the Department used the Energy 
Information Administration's (EIA) Uranium Industry Annual to determine 
the available average spot- and long-term volumes of U.S. utility 
purchases. We have continued to use data which reflects the period 1993 
through 1996. The EIA has withheld certain business proprietary 
contract data from the public versions of the Uranium Industry Annual 
1993, Uranium Industry Annual 1994, Uranium Industry Annual 1995 and 
the Uranium Industry Annual 1996 (the most recent edition). The EIA, 
however, provided all business proprietary data to the Department and 
the Department has used it to update its weighting calculation.

Calculation Announcement

    The Department determined, using the methodology and information 
described above, that the observed market price is $11.76. This 
reflects an average spot market price of $11.84, weighted at 79.31 
percent, and an average long-term contract price of $12.29, weighted at 
20.69 percent. Since this price is below $12.00-$13.99 as defined in 
Appendix A of the suspension agreement with Kazakhstan, Kazakhstan does 
not receive an Appendix A quota for the period April 1, 1998, to 
September 30, 1998.

Comments

    Consistent with the February 22, 1993, letter of interpretation, 
the Department provided interested parties the preliminary price 
determination for this period on March 20, 1998. No interested party 
submitted comments.

    Dated: April 1, 1998.
Joseph A. Spetrini,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Antidumping Countervailing Duty--Group 
III.
[FR Doc. 98-9093 Filed 4-6-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P