[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 236 (Monday, December 11, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 58172-58175]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-26609]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[C-533-874]


Certain Cold-Drawn Mechanical Tubing of Carbon and Alloy Steel 
From India: Final Affirmative Countervailing Duty Determination

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

SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce (Department) determines that 
countervailable subsidies are being

[[Page 58173]]

provided to producers and exporters of certain cold-drawn mechanical 
tubing of carbon and alloy steel (cold-drawn mechanical tubing) from 
India. The period of investigation is April 1, 2016, through March 31, 
2017.

DATES: Applicable December 11, 2017.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ryan Mullen or Carrie Bethea, AD/CVD 
Operations, Office V, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade 
Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue 
NW., Washington, DC 20230; telephone 202-482-5260 or 202-482-1491, 
respectively.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    On September 25, 2017, the Department published the Preliminary 
Determination in the Federal Register.\1\
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    \1\ See Certain Cold-Drawn Mechanical Tubing of Carbon and Alloy 
Steel from India: Preliminary Affirmative Countervailing Duty 
Determination, 82 FR 44558 (September 25, 2017) and accompanying 
Preliminary Decision Memorandum (Preliminary Determination).
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    A summary of the events that occurred since the Department 
published the Preliminary Determination, as well as a full discussion 
of the issues raised by parties for this final determination, may be 
found in the accompanying Issues and Decision Memorandum.\2\ The Issues 
and 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 and 
is available to all parties in the Central Records Unit, room B8024 of 
the main Department of Commerce building. In addition, a complete 
version of the Issues and Decision Memorandum can be accessed directly 
at http://enforcement.trade.gov. The signed and electronic versions of 
the Issues and Decision Memorandum are identical in content.
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    \2\ See Memorandum, ``Issues and Decision Memorandum for the 
Final Determination in the Countervailing Duty Investigation of 
Certain Cold-Drawn Mechanical Tubing of Carbon and Alloy Steel from 
India,'' dated concurrently with this determination and hereby 
adopted by this notice (Issues and Decision Memorandum).
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Scope Comments

    In the Department's Preliminary Scope Decision Memorandum, we set 
aside a period of time for parties to raise issues regarding product 
coverage (i.e., scope) in scope case briefs or other written comments 
on scope issues.\3\ Certain interested parties commented on the scope 
of the investigation as it appeared in the Preliminary Scope Decision 
Memorandum. For a summary of the product coverage comments and rebuttal 
responses submitted to the record for this final determination, and 
accompanying discussion and analysis of all comments timely received, 
see the Final Scope Decision Memorandum.\4\ See the scope in Appendix I 
to this notice.
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    \3\ See Memorandum, ``Scope Comments Decision Memorandum for the 
Preliminary Determinations,'' dated November 15, 2017 (Preliminary 
Scope Decision Memorandum).
    \4\ See Memorandum, ``Scope Comments Decision Memorandum for the 
Final Determinations,'' dated December 4, 2017 (Final Scope Decision 
Memorandum).
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Scope of the Investigation

    The products covered by this investigation are cold-drawn 
mechanical tubing from India. For a complete description of the scope 
of this investigation, see ``Scope of the Investigation,'' in Appendix 
I of this notice.

Analysis of Subsidy Programs and Comments Received

    The subsidy programs under investigation, and the issues raised in 
the case and rebuttal briefs filed by the parties, are discussed in the 
Issues and Decision Memorandum. A list of the issues parties raised and 
to which we responded in the Issues and Decisions Memorandum, is 
attached to this notice at Appendix II.

Verification

    The Department conducted verification of the questionnaire 
responses submitted by the Government of India, Goodluck India Limited 
(Goodluck), and Tube Investments of India Limited (Tube Investments) 
between October 23, and October 31, 2017.

Use of Adverse Facts Available

    If necessary information is not available on the record, or an 
interested party withholds information, fails to provide requested 
information in a timely manner, significantly impedes a proceeding by 
not providing information, or information provided cannot be verified, 
the Department will apply facts available, pursuant to section 
776(a)(1) and (2) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act). For 
purposes of this final determination, the Department relied, in part, 
on facts available and, because certain respondents did not cooperate 
by not acting to the best of their ability to respond to the 
Department's requests for information, we drew an adverse inference, 
where appropriate, in selecting from among the facts otherwise 
available.\5\ A full discussion of our decision to rely on adverse 
facts available is presented in the ``Use of Facts Otherwise Available 
and Adverse Inferences'' section of the Issues and Decision Memorandum.
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    \5\ See sections 776(a) and (b) of the Act.
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Changes Since the Preliminary Determination

    Based on our analysis of the comments received from parties and the 
minor corrections presented, as well as additional items discovered at 
verification, we made certain changes to the respondents' subsidy rate 
calculations set forth in the Preliminary Determination. For a 
discussion of these changes, see the Issues and Decision Memorandum and 
the Final Calculation Memoranda.\6\
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    \6\ See Issues and Decision Memorandum; see also Memorandum, 
``Final Determination Calculation for Goodluck India Limited,'' 
dated December 4, 2017 (Goodluck Final Calculation Memorandum) and 
Memorandum, ``Final Determination Calculation for Tube Investments 
of India Limited,'' dated December 4, 2017 (Tube Investments Final 
Calculation Memorandum) (collectively, Final Calculation Memoranda).
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Final Determination

    In accordance with section 705(c)(1)(B)(i) of the Act, we 
calculated a rate for each exporter/producer of the subject merchandise 
individually investigated, i.e., Goodluck and Tube Investments. In 
accordance with section 705(c)(5)(A) of the Act, for companies not 
individually investigated, we apply an ``all-others'' rate, which is 
normally calculated by weighting the subsidy rates of the individual 
companies selected as mandatory respondents by those companies' exports 
of the subject merchandise to the United States. Under section 
705(c)(5)(A)(i) of the Act, the ``all-others'' rate excludes zero and 
de minimis rates calculated for the exporters and producers 
individually investigated, as well as rates based entirely on facts 
otherwise available. Where the rates for the individually investigated 
companies are all zero or de minimis, or determined entirely using 
facts otherwise available, section 705(c)(5)(A)(ii) of the Act 
instructs the Department to establish an ``all-others'' rate using 
``any reasonable method.''
    In this investigation, the Department calculated individual 
countervailable subsidy rates for Goodluck and Tube Investments that 
are not zero, de minimis, or based entirely on facts otherwise 
available. The Department calculated the all-others rate using a 
weighted-average of the individual estimated subsidy rates calculated 
for

[[Page 58174]]

the examined respondents using each company's publicly-ranged values 
for the merchandise under consideration.
    The final subsidy rates are as follows:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                         Company                           Subsidy rate
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Goodluck India Limited..................................            8.02
Tube Investments of India Limited.......................           42.60
All-Others..............................................           22.41
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Disclosure

    We intend to disclose the calculations performed within five days 
of the date of publication of this notice to parties in this proceeding 
in accordance with 19 CFR 351.224(b).

Continuation of Suspension of Liquidation

    As a result of our Preliminary Determination and pursuant to 
section 703(d) of the Act, we instructed U.S. Customs and Border 
Protection (CBP) to suspend liquidation of any entries of merchandise 
under consideration from India that were entered, or withdrawn from 
warehouse, for consumption on or after September 25, 2017, which is the 
publication date in the Federal Register of the Preliminary 
Determination.
    If the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) issues a final 
affirmative injury determination, we will issue a countervailing duty 
order and will require a cash deposit of estimated countervailing 
duties for such entries of subject merchandise in the amounts indicated 
above. If the ITC determines that material injury, or threat of 
material injury, does not exist, this proceeding will be terminated and 
all estimated duties deposited or securities posted as a result of the 
suspension of liquidation will be refunded or canceled.

U.S. International Trade Commission Notification

    In accordance with section 705(d) of the Act, we will notify the 
ITC of our determination. In addition, we are making available to the 
ITC all non-privileged and non-proprietary information relating to this 
investigation. We will allow the ITC access to all privileged and 
business proprietary information in our files, provided the ITC 
confirms that it will not disclose such information, either publicly or 
under an administrative protective order (APO), without the written 
consent of the Acting Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and 
Compliance.

Notification Regarding Administrative Protective Orders

    This notice serves as a reminder to parties such to an APO of their 
responsibility concerning the disposition of proprietary information 
disclosed under APO in accordance with 19 CFR 351.305(a)(3). Timely 
written notification of the return or destruction of APO materials or, 
alternatively, conversion to judicial protective order, is hereby 
requested. Failure to comply with the regulations and terms of an APO 
is a violation that is subject to sanction.

Notification to Interested Parties

    This determination is published pursuant to section 705(d) and 
777(i) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.210(c).

     Dated: December 4, 2017.
Gary Taverman,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Antidumping and Countervailing Duty 
Operations, performing the non-exclusive functions and duties of the 
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.

Appendix I

Scope of the Investigation

    The scope of this investigation covers cold-drawn mechanical 
tubing of carbon and alloy steel (cold-drawn mechanical tubing) of 
circular cross-section, 304.8 mm or more in length, in actual 
outside diameters less than 331mm, and regardless of wall thickness, 
surface finish, end finish or industry specification. The subject 
cold-drawn mechanical tubing is a tubular product with a circular 
cross-sectional shape that has been cold-drawn or otherwise cold-
finished after the initial tube formation in a manner that involves 
a change in the diameter or wall thickness of the tubing, or both. 
The subject cold-drawn mechanical tubing may be produced from either 
welded (e.g., electric resistance welded, continuous welded, etc.) 
or seamless (e.g., pierced, pilgered or extruded, etc.) carbon or 
alloy steel tubular products. It may also be heat treated after cold 
working. Such heat treatments may include, but are not limited to, 
annealing, normalizing, quenching and tempering, stress relieving or 
finish annealing. Typical cold-drawing methods for subject 
merchandise include, but are not limited to, drawing over mandrel, 
rod drawing, plug drawing, sink drawing and similar processes that 
involve reducing the outside diameter of the tubing with a die or 
similar device, whether or not controlling the inside diameter of 
the tubing with an internal support device such as a mandrel, rod, 
plug or similar device. Other cold-finishing operations that may be 
used to produce subject merchandise include cold-rolling and cold-
sizing the tubing.
    Subject cold-drawn mechanical tubing is typically certified to 
meet industry specifications for cold-drawn tubing including but not 
limited to:
    (1) American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) or 
American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) specifications ASTM 
A-512, ASTM A-513 Type 3 (ASME SA513 Type 3), ASTM A-513 Type 4 
(ASME SA513 Type 4), ASTM A-513 Type 5 (ASME SA513 Type 5), ASTM A-
513 Type 6 (ASME SA513 Type 6), ASTM A-519 (cold-finished);
    (2) SAE International (Society of Automotive Engineers) 
specifications SAE J524, SAE J525, SAE J2833, SAE J2614, SAE J2467, 
SAE J2435, SAE J2613;
    (3) Aerospace Material Specification (AMS) AMS T-6736 (AMS 
6736), AMS 6371, AMS 5050, AMS 5075, AMS 5062, AMS 6360, AMS 6361, 
AMS 6362, AMS 6371, AMS 6372, AMS 6374, AMS 6381, AMS 6415;
    (4) United States Military Standards (MIL) MIL-T-5066 and MIL-T-
6736;
    (5) foreign standards equivalent to one of the previously listed 
ASTM, ASME, SAE, AMS or MIL specifications including but not limited 
to:
    (a) German Institute for Standardization (DIN) specifications 
DIN 2391-2, DIN 2393-2, DIN 2394-2);
    (b) European Standards (EN) EN 10305-1, EN 10305-2, EN 10305-4, 
EN 10305-6 and European national variations on those standards 
(e.g., British Standard (BS EN), Irish Standard (IS EN) and German 
Standard (DIN EN) variations, etc.);
    (c) Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS) JIS G 3441 and JIS G 
3445; and
    (6) proprietary standards that are based on one of the above-
listed standards.
    The subject cold-drawn mechanical tubing may also be dual or 
multiple certified to more than one standard. Pipe that is multiple 
certified as cold-drawn mechanical tubing and to other 
specifications not covered by this scope, is also covered by the 
scope of these investigations when it meets the physical description 
set forth above.
    Steel products included in the scope of these investigations are 
products in which: (1) Iron predominates, by weight, over each of 
the other contained elements; and (2) the carbon content is 2 
percent or less by weight.
    For purposes of this scope, the place of cold-drawing determines 
the country of origin of the subject merchandise. Subject 
merchandise that is subject to minor working in a third country that 
occurs after drawing in one of the subject countries including, but 
not limited to, heat treatment, cutting to length, straightening, 
nondestructive testing, deburring or chamfering, remains within the 
scope of these investigations.
    All products that meet the written physical description are 
within the scope of these investigations unless specifically 
excluded or covered by the scope of an existing order. Merchandise 
that meets the physical description of cold-drawn mechanical tubing 
above is within the scope of the investigations even if it is also 
dual or multiple certified to an otherwise excluded specification 
listed below. The following products are outside of, and/or 
specifically excluded from, the scope of these investigations:
    (1) Cold-drawn stainless steel tubing, containing 10.5 percent 
or more of chromium by weight and not more than 1.2 percent of 
carbon by weight;
    (2) products certified to one or more of the ASTM, ASME or 
American Petroleum Institute (API) specifications listed below:

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     ASTM A-53;
     ASTM A-106;
     ASTM A-179 (ASME SA 179);
     ASTM A-192 (ASME SA 192);
     ASTM A-209 (ASME SA 209);
     ASTM A-210 (ASME SA 210);
     ASTM A-213 (ASME SA 213);
     ASTM A-334 (ASME SA 334);
     ASTM A-423 (ASME SA 423);
     ASTM A-498;
     ASTM A-496 (ASME SA 496);
     ASTM A-199;
     ASTM A-500;
     ASTM A-556;
     ASTM A-565;
     API 5L; and
     API 5CT

except that any cold-drawn tubing product certified to one of the 
above excluded specifications will not be excluded from the scope if 
it is also dual- or multiple-certified to any other specification 
that otherwise would fall within the scope of these investigations.
    The products subject to the investigations are currently 
classified in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States 
(HTSUS) under item numbers: 7304.31.3000, 7304.31.6050, 
7304.51.1000, 7304.51.5005, 7304.51.5060, 7306.30.5015, 
7306.30.5020, 7306.50.5030. Subject merchandise may also enter under 
numbers 7306.30.1000 and 7306.50.1000. The HTSUS subheadings above 
are provided for convenience and customs purposes only. The written 
description of the scope of the investigations is dispositive.

Appendix II

List of Topics Discussed in the Final Decision Memo

I. Summary
II. Background
III. Period of Investigation
IV. Scope Comments
V. Scope of the Investigation
VI. Subsidies Valuation Information
VII. Benchmarks and Interest Rates
VIII. Use of Facts Otherwise Available and Adverse Inferences
IX. Analysis of Programs
X. Discussion of the Issues
    Comment 1: The Department's Application of AFA for the GOI's 
Failure to Provide Requested Information
    Comment 2: Whether AAP and DDB Programs are Countervailable
    Comment 3: The Department's Treatment of EPCGS
    Comment 4: The Department's Treatment of SHIS
    Comment 5: Whether the Benefit for MEIS is Determined at the 
Date of Issuance
    Comment 6: Whether the Deduction under 32-AC of the Income Tax 
Act is Countervailable
    Comment 7: The Department's Determination Regarding the Entry 
Tax Exemption for the Iron and Steel Industry in Uttar Pradesh
    Comment 8: The Denominator Used to Calculate Goodluck's DDB 
Exemption
    Comment 9: The Inclusion of Tube Investments' Non-Subject 
Merchandise in the Benefit Calculation for DDB
    Comment 10: The Department's Calculation Methodology for Tube 
Investments' EPCGS Benefits
    Comment 11: The Department's Application of AFA for Certain 
Unreported Subsidies Discovered at Tube Investments' Verification
    Comment 12: The Department's Calculation Methodology for the 
Income Tax for Research and Development Program
    Comment 13: The Department's Decision to Countervail Benefits 
for Tube Investments' Non-Subject Merchandise
    Comment 14: The Revised Sales and Subsidy Data Presented as 
Minor Corrections
XI. Conclusion

[FR Doc. 2017-26609 Filed 12-8-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P