[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 192 (Thursday, October 5, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 46483-46485]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-21460]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[C-489-817]


Oil Country Tubular Goods From the Republic of Turkey: Amendment 
of Countervailing Duty Order

AGENCY: Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, 
Department of Commerce.

SUMMARY: On May 30, 2017, the United States Court of Appeals for the 
Federal Circuit (CAFC) affirmed the Department of Commerce's (the 
Department) remand redetermination concerning the countervailing duty 
(CVD) investigation of oil country tubular goods (OCTG) from the 
Republic of Turkey (Turkey). This judgment was not appealed within the 
90-day deadline, and became final and conclusive on August 28, 2017. 
The Department previously notified the public that the final judgment 
in this case by the U.S. Court of International

[[Page 46484]]

Trade (CIT) is not in harmony with the Department's final determination 
in the CVD investigation of OCTG from Turkey. Because the judgment in 
this case is now final and conclusive, the Department is amending its 
CVD order on OCTG from Turkey covering the period of investigation of 
January 1, 2012, through December 31, 2012, to exclude Tosyali Dis 
Ticaret A.S, Tos[ccedil]elik Profil ve Sac Endustrisi A.S., Tosyali 
Elektrik Enerjisi Toptan Satis Ith. Ihr. A.S., Tosyali Demir Celik San. 
A.S., and Tosyali Holding A.S. (collectively, Tos[ccedil]elik) from the 
order, and to revise the net countervailing subsidy rate for Borusan 
Istikbal Ticaret, Borusan Mannesmann Boru Sanayi, Borusan Mannesmann 
Boru Yatirim Holding A.S., and Borusan Holding A.S. (collectively, 
Borusan) and the ``all others'' rate.

DATES: Applicable March 3, 2016.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Aimee Phelan or Jennifer Shore, AD/CVD 
Operations, Office I, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade 
Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue 
NW., Washington, DC 20230; telephone (202) 482-0697 or (202) 482-2778, 
respectively.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background

    On July 18, 2014, the Department published its final affirmative 
CVD determination and final affirmative critical circumstances 
determination in this proceeding.\1\ The Department reached affirmative 
determinations for mandatory respondents Borusan and Tos[ccedil]elik. 
On September 2, 2014, the International Trade Commission notified the 
Department of its affirmative determination that an industry in the 
U.S. was materially injured by reason of OCTG that were subsidized by 
the Government of Turkey (GOT).\2\ On September 10, 2014, the 
Department published the CVD orders on OCTG from India and the Republic 
of Turkey.\3\ The petitioner, Maverick Tube Corporation, and Borusan, 
each appealed the Final Determination to the CIT.\4\ In Borusan, the 
CIT remanded for further consideration the Department's finding of 
distortion in the Turkish hot-rolled steel (HRS) market, the 
Department's selection of a HRS benchmark, and the Department's 
application of facts available with adverse inferences with respect to 
purchases of HRS by respondent Borusan. In Maverick, the CIT remanded 
issues pertaining to the Department's HRS benchmark calculations as 
well and, in addition, the Department's benchmark valuation for a 
parcel of land that the GOT granted to Tos[ccedil]elik in 2008 for less 
than adequate remuneration.
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    \1\ See Certain Oil Country Tubular Goods from the Republic of 
Turkey: Final Affirmative Countervailing Duty Determination and 
Final Affirmative Critical Circumstances Determination, 79 FR 41964 
(July 18, 2014) (Final Determination).
    \2\ See Letter from the ITC to the Department, dated September 
2, 2014; see also Certain Oil Country Tubular Goods from India, 
Korea, Philippines, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, Ukraine, and Vietnam 
(Investigation Nos. 701-TA-499-500 and 731-TA-1215-1217 and 1219-
1223 (Final) USITC Publication 4489, September 2014.
    \3\ See Certain Oil Country Tubular Goods from India and the 
Republic of Turkey: Countervailing Duty Orders and Amended 
Affirmative Final Countervailing Duty Determination for India, 79 FR 
53688 (September 10, 2014) (Orders).
    \4\ See Borusan Mannesmann Boru Sanayi Ve Ticaret A.S. v. United 
States, 61 F. Supp. 3d 1306 (CIT 2015) (Borusan); and Maverick Tube 
Corporation v. United States, Consol. Court No. 14-00229, Slip Op. 
15-59 (CIT 2015) (Maverick). On June 22, 2015, the CIT granted a 
motion to consolidate Court No. 14-00214 into Consolidated Court No. 
14-00229.
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    On August 31, 2015, the Department issued its Remand 
Redetermination in accordance with the CIT's Order.\5\ On remand, the 
Department revised the net countervailable subsidy rates for Borusan, 
Tos[ccedil]elik, and the ``all others'' rate. On February 22, 2016, the 
CIT affirmed the Department's Remand Redetermination.\6\ In response to 
the CIT's February 22, 2016, decision, the Department published a 
notice of court decision not in harmony with the final determination of 
the CVD investigation, and amended its Final Determination with respect 
to Borusan, Tos[ccedil]elik, and the ``all others'' rate.\7\ The 
revised net countervailable subsidy rates for Tos[ccedil]elik and 
Borusan are 0.95 percent and 2.39 percent, respectively. The revised 
``all others'' rate is 2.39 percent. Because neither Tos[ccedil]elik 
nor Borusan had a superseding cash deposit rate (e.g., from an 
administrative review), the Department issued amended cash deposit 
instructions to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) on March 16, 
2016.\8\
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    \5\ See Final Results of Remand Redetermination, Borusan 
Mannesmann Boru Sanayi Ve Ticaret A.S. and Borusan Istikbal Ticaret 
v. United States; Maverick Tube Corporation v. United States, 
Consol. Ct. No. 14-00229, 61 F. Supp. 3d 1306 and Slip Op. 15-59, 
dated August 31, 2017 (Remand Redetermination).
    \6\ See Maverick Tube Corporation v. United States, CIT Consol. 
Court No. 14-00229, Slip Op. 16-16 (February 22, 2016).
    \7\ See Oil Country Tubular Goods from Turkey: Notice of Court 
Decision not in Harmony with the Final Determination of the 
Countervailing Duty Investigation, 81 FR 12691 (March 10, 2016) 
(Timken Notice).
    \8\ See Message No. 6076302, dated March 16, 2016 (Message No. 
6076302).
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    Borusan appealed, and Maverick cross-appealed, the CIT's decision 
to the CAFC, which affirmed the Department's Remand Redetermination on 
May 30, 2017.\9\ Parties had 90 days, until August 28, 2017, to appeal 
the CAFC's decision by filing a petition for writ of certiorari with 
the United States Supreme Court. No party appealed.
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    \9\ See Maverick Tube Corporation v. United States, 857 F.3d 
1353 (Fed. Cir. 2017).
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Amendment of the Order on OCTG From Turkey

    The period to appeal the CAFC's decision has passed, and a final 
and conclusive court decision has been reached in this case. Therefore, 
the Department is amending the CVD order on OCTG from Turkey \10\ to 
exclude from the order subject merchandise produced and exported by 
Tos[ccedil]elik \11\ because the revised net countervailable subsidy 
rate is de minimis.
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    \10\ See Orders.
    \11\ The Department determined that Tosyali Dis Ticaret A.S, 
Tos[ccedil]elik Profil ve Sac Endustrisi A.S., Tosyali Elektrik 
Enerjisi Toptan Satis Ith. Ihr. A.S., Tosyali Demir Celik San. A.S., 
and Tosyali Holding A.S. are cross-owned. See Final Determination 
and accompanying Issues and Decision Memorandum, at 6-8.
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Net Countervailable Subsidy Rates

    The net countervailable subsidy rates are as follows:

[[Page 46485]]



------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                            Net subsidy
                    Producer/exporter                     rate (percent)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Borusan Istikbal Ticaret, Borusan Mannesmann Boru                   2.39
 Sanayi, Borusan Mannesmann Boru Yatirim Holding A.S.,
 and Borusan Holding A.S \12\...........................
Tosyali Dis Ticaret A.S, Tos[ccedil]elik Profil ve Sac            * 0.95
 Endustrisi A.S., Tosyali Elektrik Enerjisi Toptan Satis
 Ith. Ihr. A.S., Tosyali Demir Celik San. A.S., and
 Tosyali Holding A.S....................................
All Others..............................................            2.39
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* De minimis.

Continuation of Suspension of Liquidation, in Part
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    \12\ The Department determined that Borusan Istikbal Ticaret, 
Borusan Mannesmann Boru Sanayi, Borusan Mannesmann Boru Yatirim 
Holding A.S., and Borusan Holding A.S. are cross owned. Id. at 4-6.
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    In accordance with section 705(c)(1)(B) of the Tariff Act of 1930, 
as amended (the Act), the Department has instructed CBP to continue to 
suspend liquidation on all relevant entries of OCTG from Turkey.\13\ 
These instructions suspending liquidation will remain in effect until 
further notice. However, because the revised countervailable subsidy 
rate for Tos[ccedil]elik is de minimis, the Department is directing CBP 
to liquidate all entries produced and exported by Tos[ccedil]elik 
currently suspended without regard to countervailing duties, and to 
discontinue the suspension of liquidation of entries of subject 
merchandise where Tos[ccedil]elik acted as both the producer and 
exporter. Entries of subject merchandise exported to the United States 
by any other producer and exporter combination involving 
Tos[ccedil]elik are not entitled to this exclusion from suspension of 
liquidation and are subject to the cash deposit rate for the ``all 
others'' entity.
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    \13\ Id., 79 FR at 53690; see also Message No. 4260305, dated 
September 17, 2014, and Message No. 6076302, dated March 16, 2016.
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    Because the net countervailable subsidy rate determined for 
Tos[ccedil]elik is de minimis, consistent with the requirement under 
section 705(c)(5)(A) of the Act that the calculation of the ``all 
others'' rate excludes zero or de minimis rates calculated for the 
companies individually investigated, the Department revised the ``all 
others'' rate.\14\ Therefore, for purposes of the amended CVD order 
with respect OCTG from Turkey, the ``all others'' cash deposit rate is 
amended to Borusan's revised calculated subsidy rate of 2.39 percent.
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    \14\ See Timken Notice, 81 FR, at 12692.
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Notification to Interested Parties

    This notice constitutes the amended CVD order with respect OCTG 
from Turkey. This notice is issued and published in accordance with 
sections 516A(e) and 706(a) of the Act.

    Dated: September 27, 2017.
Carole Showers,
Executive Director, Office of Policy performing the duties of the 
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.
[FR Doc. 2017-21460 Filed 10-4-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P