[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 115 (Friday, June 14, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 27758-27760]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-12616]



[[Page 27758]]

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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-570-904]


Certain Activated Carbon From the People's Republic of China: 
Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review and 
Preliminary Determination of No Shipments; 2017-2018

AGENCY: Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, 
Department of Commerce.
SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily determines 
that Carbon Activated Tianjin Co., Ltd. (Carbon Activated) and Datong 
Juqiang Activated Carbon Co., Ltd. (Datong Juqiang), exporters of 
certain activated carbon from the People's Republic of China (China), 
sold subject merchandise in the United States at less than fair value 
during the period of review (POR) April 1, 2017 through March 31, 2018. 
Interested parties are invited to comment on these preliminary results.

DATES: Applicable June 14, 2019.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John Anwesen or Jinny Ahn, AD/CVD 
Operations, Office VIII, Enforcement and Compliance, International 
Trade Administration, Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue 
NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-0131 or (202) 482-0339, 
respectively.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Scope of the Order

    The merchandise subject to the order is certain activated carbon. 
The products are currently classifiable under the Harmonized Tariff 
Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) subheading 3802.10.00. Although 
the HTSUS subheading is provided for convenience and customs purposes, 
the written description of the scope of the order remains 
dispositive.\1\
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    \1\ For a complete description of the Scope of the Order, see 
Memorandum, ``Decision Memorandum for the Preliminary Results of 
Antidumping Duty Administrative Review: Certain Activated Carbon 
from the People's Republic of China; 2017-2018,'' dated June 10, 
2019 (Preliminary Decision Memorandum) and hereby adopted by this 
notice.
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Background

    This administrative review is being conducted in accordance with 
section 751(a) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act). 
Commerce published the notice of initiation of this administrative 
review on June 6, 2018.\2\ On December 7, 2018, Commerce extended the 
preliminary results deadline until April 30, 2019.\3\ Commerce 
exercised its discretion to toll all deadlines affected by the partial 
federal government closure from December 22, 2018 through the 
resumption of operations on January 29, 2019.\4\ If the new deadline 
falls on a non-business day, in accordance with Commerce's practice, 
the deadline will become the next business day. The revised preliminary 
results deadline is now June 10, 2019.
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    \2\ See Initiation of Antidumping and Countervailing Duty 
Administrative Reviews, 83 FR 26258 (June 6, 2018) (Initiation 
Notice).
    \3\ See Memorandum, ``Certain Activated Carbon from the People's 
Republic of China: Extension of Deadline for Preliminary Results of 
the Eleventh Antidumping Duty Administrative Review,'' dated 
December 7, 2018.
    \4\ See memorandum to the Record from 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, ``Deadlines 
Affected by the Partial Shutdown of the Federal Government,'' dated 
January 28, 2019. All deadlines in this segment of the proceeding 
have been extended by 40 days.
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Preliminary Determination of No Shipments

    Based on our analysis of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) 
information, and the no shipment certifications submitted by Charter 
Link Logistics Limited, Datong Municipal Yunguang Activated Carbon Co., 
Ltd., Jilin Bright Future Chemicals Co., Ltd., Shanxi Dapu 
International Trade Co., Ltd., Shanxi Industry Technology Trading Co., 
Ltd., Shanxi Tianxi Purification Filter Co., Ltd., and Tianjin Channel 
Filters Co., Ltd., Commerce preliminarily determines that these 
companies had no shipments of subject merchandise during the POR. For 
additional information regarding this determination, see the 
Preliminary Decision Memorandum.
    Consistent with our practice in non-market economy (NME) cases, we 
are not rescinding this review but instead intend to complete the 
review with respect to these seven companies, for which we have 
preliminarily found no shipments, and issue appropriate instructions to 
CBP based on the final results of the review.\5\
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    \5\ See Non-Market Economy Antidumping Proceedings: Assessment 
of Antidumping Duties, 76 FR 65694, 65694-95 (October 24, 2011).
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Methodology

    Commerce is conducting this review in accordance with section 
751(a)(1)(B) of the Act. We calculated export prices and constructed 
export prices in accordance with section 772 of the Act. Because China 
is an NME country within the meaning of section 771(18) of the Act, 
normal value (NV) has been calculated in accordance with section 773(c) 
of the Act.
    For a full description of the methodology underlying our 
conclusions, see the Preliminary Decision Memorandum. A list of the 
topics included in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum is included as 
an appendix to this notice. The Preliminary Decision Memorandum is a 
public document and is made available to the public 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 it 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 Preliminary Decision 
Memorandum is available at http://enforcement.trade.gov/frn/. The 
signed and electronic versions of the Preliminary Decision Memorandum 
are identical in content.

Preliminary Results of the Review

    Commerce preliminarily finds that 239 companies for which a review 
was requested \6\ did not establish eligibility for a separate rate 
because they failed to provide either a separate rate application or 
separate rate certification. As such, we preliminarily determine that 
these 239 companies are part of the China-wide entity.\7\
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    \6\ See Initiation Notice at 26260.
    \7\ Because no interested party requested a review of the China-
wide entity and Commerce no longer considers the China-wide entity 
as an exporter conditionally subject to administrative reviews, we 
did not conduct a review of the China-wide entity. Thus, the rate 
for the China-wide entity is not subject to change as a result of 
this review. See Antidumping Proceedings: Announcement of Change in 
Department Practice for Respondent Selection in Antidumping Duty 
Proceedings and Conditional Review of the Nonmarket Economy Entity 
in NME Antidumping Duty Proceedings, 78 FR 65963, 65969-70 (November 
4, 2013). The China-wide entity rate of 2.42 U.S. dollars per 
kilogram was last reviewed in Certain Activated Carbon from the 
People's Republic of China: Final Results of Antidumping Duty 
Administrative Review; 2012-2013, 79 FR 70163 (November 25, 2014).
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    For those companies that have established their eligibility for a 
separate rate,\8\ Commerce preliminarily determines that the following 
weighted-average dumping margins exist for the POR:
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    \8\ See Preliminary Decision Memorandum.

[[Page 27759]]



------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                        Weighted-average
                                                         dumping margin
                       Exporter                        (U.S. dollars per
                                                         kilogram) \9\
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Beijing Pacific Activated Carbon Products Co., Ltd...               3.90
Carbon Activated Tianjin Co., Ltd....................               1.65
Datong Juqiang Activated Carbon Co., Ltd.............               4.33
Jacobi Carbons AB \10\...............................               3.90
Ningxia Guanghua Cherishmet Activated Carbon Co., Ltd               3.90
Ningxia Huahui Activated Carbon Co., Ltd.............               3.90
Ningxia Mineral & Chemical Limited...................               3.90
Shanxi Sincere Industrial Co., Ltd...................               3.90
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Disclosure and Public Comment

    Commerce intends to disclose the calculations performed for these 
preliminary results to the parties no later than ten days after the 
date of the public announcement of this notice in accordance with 19 
CFR 351.224(b). Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.309(c)(ii), interested parties 
may submit case briefs no later than 30 days after the date of 
publication of these preliminary results of review. Parties who submit 
case briefs or rebuttal briefs in this proceeding 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. Rebuttal 
briefs, limited to issues raised in the case briefs, may be filed no 
later than five days after the case briefs are filed.\11\
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    \9\ In the second administrative review of the Order, Commerce 
determined that it would calculate per-unit weighted-average dumping 
margins and assessment rates for all future reviews. See Certain 
Activated Carbon from the People's Republic of China: Final Results 
and Partial Rescission of Second Antidumping Duty Administrative 
Review, 75 FR 70208, 70211 (November 17, 2010); see also Notice of 
Antidumping Duty Order: Certain Activated Carbon from the People's 
Republic of China, 72 FR 20988 (April 27, 2007) (Order).
    \10\ In the third administrative review of the Order, Commerce 
found that Jacobi Carbons AB, Tianjin Jacobi International Trading 
Co. Ltd., and Jacobi Carbons Industry (Tianjin) should be treated as 
a single entity, and because there were no facts presented on the 
record of this review which would call into question our prior 
finding, we continue to treat these companies as part of a single 
entity for this administrative review, pursuant to sections 
771(33)(E), (F), and (G) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.401(f). See 
Certain Activated Carbon from the People's Republic of China: Final 
Results and Partial Rescission of Third Antidumping Duty 
Administrative Review, 76 FR 67142, 67145, n.25 (October 31, 2011); 
see also Preliminary Decision Memorandum.
    \11\ See 19 CFR 351.309(d).
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    Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.310(c), interested parties who wish to 
request a hearing must submit a written request to the Assistant 
Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance within 30 days of the date of 
publication of this notice. Requests should contain: (1) The party's 
name, address and telephone number; (2) the number of participants; and 
(3) a list of issues parties intend to discuss. Issues raised in the 
hearing will be limited to those raised in the respective case and 
rebuttal briefs.\12\ If a request for a hearing is made, Commerce 
intends to hold the hearing at the U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 
Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20230, at a date and time to be 
determined.\13\ Parties should confirm by telephone the date, time, and 
location of the hearing two days before the scheduled date.
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    \12\ See 19 CFR 351.310(c).
    \13\ See 19 CFR 351.310(d).
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    All submissions, with limited exceptions, must be filed 
electronically using ACCESS. An electronically filed document must be 
received successfully in its entirety by 5 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on 
the due date. Documents excepted from the electronic submission 
requirements must be filed manually (e.g., in paper form) with the APO/
Dockets Unit in Room 18022 and stamped with the date and time of 
receipt by 5 p.m. ET on the due date.
    Unless otherwise extended, Commerce intends to issue the final 
results of this administrative review, which will include the results 
of its analysis of issues raised in any briefs, within 120 days of 
publication of these preliminary results, pursuant to section 
751(a)(3)(A) of the Act.

Assessment Rates

    Upon issuance of the final results, Commerce will determine, and 
CBP shall assess, antidumping duties on all appropriate entries covered 
by this review.\14\ Commerce intends to issue assessment instructions 
to CBP 15 days after the publication date of the final results of this 
review. For any individually examined respondent whose (estimated) ad 
valorem weighted-average dumping margin is not zero or de minimis 
(i.e., less than 0.50 percent) in the final results of this review, 
Commerce will calculate importer-specific assessment rates on the basis 
of the ratio of the total amount of dumping calculated for the 
importer's examined sales and the total quantity of those sales, in 
accordance with 19 CFR 351.212(b)(1).\15\ Commerce will also calculate 
(estimated) \16\ ad valorem importer-specific assessment rates with 
which to assess whether the per-unit assessment rate is de minimis.\17\ 
We will instruct CBP to assess antidumping duties on all appropriate 
entries covered by this review when the importer-specific ad valorem 
assessment rate calculated in the final results of this review is not 
zero or de minimis. Where either the respondent's ad valorem weighted-
average dumping margin is zero or de minimis, or an importer-specific 
ad valorem assessment rate is zero or de minimis,\18\ we will instruct 
CBP to liquidate the appropriate entries without regard to antidumping 
duties.
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    \14\ See 19 CFR 351.212(b)(1).
    \15\ In these preliminary results, Commerce applied the 
assessment rate calculation method adopted in Antidumping 
Proceedings: Calculation of the Weighted-Average Dumping Margin and 
Assessment Rate in Certain Antidumping Proceedings: Final 
Modification, 77 FR 8101 (February 14, 2012).
    \16\ See Certain Activated Carbon from the People's Republic of 
China: Final Results and Partial Rescission of Second Antidumping 
Duty Administrative Review, 75 FR 70208 (November 17, 2010), and 
accompanying IDM at Comment 3. (In the second administrative review 
of this proceeding, we analyzed the difference between reported 
entered values and estimated customs values. In that segment, we 
found substantial differences between the estimated customs values 
for entries of certain activated carbon and the entered values 
reported to CBP. We determined that the entered values of 
constructed export price sales were being systematically 
understated, which we also determined would result in the under-
collection of antidumping duties by CBP. Accordingly, we made a 
determination to switch to per-unit assessment and cash deposit 
rates in that and subsequent reviews.)
    \17\ For calculated (estimated) ad valorem importer-specific 
assessment rates used in determining whether the per-unit assessment 
rate is de minimis, see Memorandum, ``Preliminary Results Margin 
Calculation for Datong Juqiang Activated Carbon Co., Ltd.'' and 
Memorandum, ``Antidumping Duty Administrative Review of Certain 
Activated Carbon the People's Republic of China: Preliminary Results 
Calculation Memorandum for Carbon Activated,'' both dated June 10, 
2019, and attached Margin Calculation Program Logs and Outputs.
    \18\ See 19 CFR 351.106(c)(2).
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    For the respondents that were not selected for individual 
examination in

[[Page 27760]]

this administrative review but qualified for a separate rate, the 
assessment rate will be the weighted-average rate based on publicly 
available ranged U.S. sales quantities of the mandatory respondents 
consistent with section 735(c)(5)(A) of the Act. Consequently, the rate 
established for the non-individually examined companies is a per-unit 
rate of $3.90 per kilogram.
    For the final results, if we continue to treat the 239 companies, 
identified at the Attachment to the Preliminary Decision Memorandum, as 
part of the China-wide entity, we will instruct CBP to apply a per-unit 
assessment rate of $2.42 per kilogram to all entries of subject 
merchandise during the POR which were produced and/or exported by those 
companies.
    For entries that were not reported in the U.S. sales data submitted 
by companies individually examined during this review, Commerce will 
instruct CBP to liquidate such entries at the rate for the China-wide 
entity.\19\ Additionally, if Commerce determines that an exporter under 
review had no shipments of the subject merchandise, any suspended 
entries that entered under that exporter's case number (i.e., at that 
exporter's cash deposit rate) will be liquidated at the rate for the 
China-wide entity.\20\
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    \19\ Id.
    \20\ Id.
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    In accordance with section 751(a)(2)(C) of the Act, the final 
results of this review shall be the basis for the assessment of 
antidumping duties on entries of merchandise covered by the final 
results of this review and for future deposits of estimated antidumping 
duties, where applicable.

Cash Deposit Requirements

    The following cash deposit requirements will be effective upon 
publication of the final results of this administrative review for 
shipments of the subject merchandise from China entered, or withdrawn 
from warehouse, for consumption on or after the publication date, as 
provided by section 751(a)(2)(C) of the Act: (1) For each specific 
company listed in the final results of this review, the cash deposit 
rate will be equal to the weighted-average dumping margin established 
in the final results of this review (except, if the ad valorem rate is 
de minimis, then the cash deposit rate will be zero); (2) for 
previously investigated or reviewed Chinese and non-Chinese exporters 
not listed above that have received a separate rate in the completed 
segment of this proceeding for the most recent period, the cash deposit 
rate will continue to be the existing exporter-specific cash deposit 
rate; (3) for all Chinese exporters of subject merchandise that have 
not been found to be entitled to a separate rate, the cash deposit rate 
will be the rate for the China-wide entity; and (4) for all non-Chinese 
exporters of subject merchandise which have not received their own 
separate rate, the cash deposit rate will be the rate applicable to the 
Chinese exporter that supplied that non-Chinese exporter. These cash 
deposit requirements, when imposed, shall remain in effect until 
further notice.

Notification to Importers

    This notice also serves as a preliminary reminder to importers of 
their responsibility under 19 CFR 351.402(f)(2) to file a certificate 
regarding the reimbursement of antidumping duties prior to liquidation 
of the relevant entries during this POR. Failure to comply with this 
requirement could result in Commerce's presumption that reimbursement 
of antidumping duties occurred and the subsequent assessment of double 
antidumping duties.

Notification to Interested Parties

    This administrative review and notice are issued and published in 
accordance with sections 751(a)(1) and 777(i)(1) of the Act and 19 CFR 
351.221(b)(4).

    Dated: June 10, 2019.
Jeffrey I. Kessler,
Assistant Secretary for Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Operations.

Appendix--List of Topics Discussed in the Preliminary Decision 
Memorandum

I. Summary
II. Background
III. Scope of the Order
IV. Discussion of the Methodology
    a. Preliminary Finding of No Shipments
    b. Non-Market Economy Country
    c. Separate Rates
    d. Dumping Margin for Non-Examined Separate-Rate Companies
    e. Surrogate Country and Surrogate Value Data
    f. Partial Facts Available
    g. Date of Sale
    h. Comparisons to Normal Value
    i. U.S. Price
    j. Normal Value
    k. Currency Conversion
V. Recommendation

[FR Doc. 2019-12616 Filed 6-13-19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P