[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 248 (Monday, December 28, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 84300-84302]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-28592]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-552-801]


Certain Frozen Fish Fillets From the Socialist Republic of 
Vietnam: Preliminary Results of the Antidumping Duty Administrative 
Review, Preliminary Determination of no Shipments, and Partial 
Rescission of the Antidumping Duty Administrative Review; 2018-2019

AGENCY: Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, 
Department of Commerce.
SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily determines 
that certain producers and exporters of frozen fish fillets (fish 
fillets) from the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (Vietnam) made sales of 
subject merchandise at prices below normal value (NV) during the period 
of review (POR) August 1, 2018 through July 31, 2019. We also 
preliminarily determine that two companies are eligible for separate 
rate status, 27 companies did not establish eligibility for a separate 
rate and are part of the Vietnam-wide entity, and 21 companies had no 
shipments during the POR. Finally, we are rescinding this review with 
respect to 16 companies. We invite interested parties to comment on 
these preliminary results.

DATES: Applicable December 28, 2020.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Javier Barrientos, 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) 482-2243.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    On October 7, 2019, Commerce published in the Federal Register the 
notice of initiation of an administrative review of the antidumping 
duty (AD) order on fish fillets from Vietnam with respect to 76 
companies.\1\ We selected the largest exporters, Bien Dong Seafood Co., 
Ltd. (Bien Dong) and Vinh Hoan Corporation (Vinh Hoan),\2\ as mandatory 
respondents.\3\ Following the withdrawal of all review requests for 
Bien Dong,\4\ Commerce selected Seafood Joint Stock Company No.4 Branch 
Dongtam Fisheries Processing Company (DOTASEAFOOD) as an additional 
mandatory respondent on January 22, 2020.\5\
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    \1\ See Initiation of Antidumping and Countervailing Duty 
Administrative Reviews, 84 FR 53411 (October 7, 2019).
    \2\ Vinh Hoan, Van Duc Food Export Joint Stock Company, and Van 
Duc Tien Giang Food Export Company have previously been treated as a 
single entity. See Certain Frozen Fish Fillets from the Socialist 
Republic of Vietnam: Notice of Preliminary Results and Partial 
Rescission of the Sixth Antidumping Duty Administrative Review and 
Sixth New Shipper Review, 75 FR 56062 (September 15, 2010), 
unchanged in Certain Frozen Fish Fillets from the Socialist Republic 
of Vietnam: Final Results of the Sixth Antidumping Duty 
Administrative Review and Sixth New Shipper Review, 76 FR 15941 
(March 22, 2011). We refer to the companies, collectively, as Vinh 
Hoan.
    \3\ See Memorandum, ``Selection of Respondents for Individual 
Review,'' dated December 13, 2019.
    \4\ For a detailed history of the events following initiation of 
this review, see Memorandum, ``Preliminary Results of Antidumping 
Duty Administrative Review: Certain Frozen Fish Fillets from the 
Socialist Republic of Vietnam; 2018-2019,'' dated concurrently with 
this notice (Preliminary Decision Memorandum).
    \5\ See Memorandum, ``Selection of Replacement Respondent for 
Individual Review,'' dated January 22, 2020.
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Scope of the Order

    The products covered by this order are fish fillets from Vietnam. 
For a full description of the scope of the order, see the Preliminary 
Decision Memorandum.\6\
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    \6\ See Preliminary Decision Memorandum.
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Partial Rescission of Administrative Review

    Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.213(d)(1), Commerce will rescind an 
administrative review, in whole or in part, if the party that requested 
a review withdraws the request within 90 days of the date of 
publication of the notice of initiation. As noted above, all interested 
parties timely withdrew their requests for review for 16 companies. 
Accordingly, Commerce is rescinding this review with respect to these 
16 entities, in accordance with 19 CFR 351.213(d)(1).\7\ The review 
will continue with respect to the other firms for which a review was 
requested and initiated.
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    \7\ See Appendix II for a list of companies for which we are 
rescinding this review.
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Preliminary Determination of No Shipments

    Based on an analysis of information from U.S. Customs and Border 
Protection (CBP) and the letters filed by 20 companies certifying no 
shipments, Commerce preliminarily determines that these companies had 
no shipments during the POR.\8\ In addition, with regard to an 
additional company, HVG,\9\ information on the record establishes that 
HVG had no shipments during the POR. For additional information 
regarding this finding, see the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.
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    \8\ See Preliminary Decision Memorandum for a complete list of 
companies with no shipments during the POR.
    \9\ The collapsed entity includes: An Giang Fisheries Import and 
Export Joint Stock Company; Asia Pangasius Company Limited; Europe 
Joint Stock Company; Hung Vuong Ben Tre Seafood Processing Company 
Limited; Hung Vuong Joint Stock Company (aka Hung Vuong 
Corporation); Hung Vuong Mascato Company Limited; Hung Vuong--Sa Dec 
Co. Ltd.; and Hung Vuong--Vinh Long Co., Ltd. (collectively, HVG). 
See Certain Frozen Fish Fillets from the Socialist Republic of 
Vietnam: Preliminary Results of the Antidumping Duty Administrative 
Review, Preliminary Determination of No Shipments and Partial 
Rescission of the Antidumping Duty Administrative Review; 2016-2017, 
83 FR 46479 (September 13, 2018), and accompanying Preliminary 
Decision Memorandum (PDM) at 4, unchanged in Certain Frozen Fish 
Fillets from the Socialist Republic of Vietnam: Final Results, and 
Final Results of No Shipments of the Antidumping Duty Administrative 
Review; 2016-2017, 84 FR 18007 (April 20, 2019).
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    Consistent with our assessment practice in non-market economy (NME) 
administrative reviews, Commerce is not rescinding this review for 
these 21 companies,\10\ but intends to complete the review and issue 
appropriate instructions to CBP based on the final results of the 
review.\11\
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    \10\ As noted above, HVG is a single entity consisting of eight 
companies.
    \11\ See Non-Market Economy Antidumping Proceedings: Assessment 
of Antidumping Duties, 76 FR 65694, 65694-95 (October 24, 2011) and 
the ``Assessment Rates'' section, below.
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Separate Rates

    Commerce preliminarily determines that information placed on the 
record by mandatory respondent, Vinh Hoan, and separate rate applicant, 
Nam Viet Corporation (NAVICO), demonstrates that these companies are 
entitled to separate rate status. The remaining 27 companies subject to 
this review have not established eligibility for a separate rate, and 
are, therefore, considered to be part of the Vietnam-wide entity for 
these

[[Page 84301]]

preliminary results.\12\ For additional information, see the 
Preliminary Decision Memorandum.
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    \12\ See Preliminary Decision Memorandum for a complete list of 
companies not eligible for a separate rate. We note that this 
includes DOTASEAFOOD, a mandatory respondent that failed to respond 
to Commerce's request for information.
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Vietnam-Wide Entity

    The Vietnam-wide entity will not be under review unless a party 
specifically requests, or Commerce self-initiates, a review of the 
entity. Because no party requested a review of the Vietnam-wide entity, 
the entity is not under review, and the entity's rate is not subject to 
change.\13\
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    \13\ Id.
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    Other than the companies discussed above--i.e., those that received 
separate rate status, those with no shipments during the POR, or those 
for which all review requests were timely rescinded--Commerce considers 
all other companies for which a review was requested to be part of the 
Vietnam-wide entity. For additional information, see the Preliminary 
Decision Memorandum.

Methodology

    Commerce is conducting this review in accordance with sections 
751(a)(1)(B) and 751(a)(2) of the Act. We have calculated constructed 
export prices in accordance with section 772 of the Act. Because 
Vietnam is an NME country within the meaning of section 771(18) of the 
Act, 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. The Preliminary 
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 http://access.trade.gov. In addition, a complete 
version of the Preliminary Decision Memorandum can be accessed directly 
at http://enforcement.trade.gov/frn/. The signed Preliminary Decision 
Memorandum and the electronic version of the Preliminary Decision 
Memorandum are identical in content.\14\
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    \14\ A list of topics discussed in the Preliminary Decision 
Memorandum is included at Appendix I of this notice.
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Preliminary Results of Review

    Commerce preliminarily determines that the following weighted-
average dumping margins exist for the period August 1, 2018 through 
July 31, 2019:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                             Weighted-
                                                              average
                                                              dumping
                    Exporter/producer                         margin
                                                           (dollars per
                                                             kilogram)
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Vinh Hoan Corporation/Van Duc Food Export Joint Stock              $0.09
 Company/Van Duc Tien Giang Food Export Company.........
Review-Specific Rate Applicable to the Following
 Company: \15\
    Nam Viet Corporation................................           $0.09
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Disclosure and Public Comment
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    \15\ This rate is based on the rate calculated for Vinh Hoan.
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    Commerce intends to disclose to interested parties the calculations 
performed in connection with these preliminary results within five days 
of the date of publication of this notice in accordance with 19 CFR 
351.224(b). Case briefs or other written comments may be submitted to 
the Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance no later than 30 
days after the date of publication of these preliminary results, unless 
the Secretary alters the time limit. Rebuttal briefs, limited to issues 
raised in case briefs, may be submitted no later than seven days after 
the deadline for case briefs.\16\ Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.309(c)(2) and 
(d)(2), parties who submit case briefs or rebuttal briefs in this 
review 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. Case and rebuttal briefs should be filed using ACCESS.\17\ 
Note that Commerce has temporarily modified certain of its requirements 
for serving documents containing business proprietary information.\18\
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    \16\ See 19 CFR 351.309; see also 19 CFR 351.303 (for general 
filing requirements).
    \17\ See 19 CFR 351.303.
    \18\ See Temporary Rule Modifying AD/CVD Service Requirements 
Due to COVID-19, 85 FR 41363 (July 10, 2020).
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    Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.310(c), interested parties who wish to 
request a hearing, limited to issues raised in the case and rebuttal 
briefs, must submit a request to the Assistant Secretary for 
Enforcement and Compliance, U.S. Department of Commerce, within 30 days 
after the date of publication of this notice. Requests should contain 
the party's name, address, and telephone number, the number of 
participants, whether any participant is a foreign national, and a list 
of the issues to be discussed. If a request for a hearing is made, 
Commerce will announce the date and time of the hearing. Parties should 
confirm by telephone the date, time, and location of the hearing two 
days before the scheduled date.
    Unless otherwise extended, Commerce intends to issue the final 
results of this administrative review, which will include the results 
of our analysis of all issues raised in the case briefs, within 120 
days of publication of these preliminary results in the Federal 
Register, 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.\19\ Commerce intends to issue assessment instructions 
to CBP 15 days after the publication date of the final results of this 
review.
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    \19\ See 19 CFR 351.212(b).
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    If Vinh Hoan's 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 or customer-specific 
assessment rates for Vinh Hoan, in accordance with 19 CFR 
351.212(b)(1). Specifically, Commerce intends to calculate an importer-
specific per-unit assessment rate by dividing the amount of dumping for 
reviewed sales to the importer or customer by the total sales quantity 
associated with those transactions. Where either a respondent's 
weighted-average dumping margin is zero or de minimis, or an importer-
specific ad valorem assessment rate is zero or de minimis, we will 
instruct CBP to liquidate appropriate entries without regard to 
antidumping duties.\20\
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    \20\ See 19 CFR 351.106(c)(2).
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    For any respondent that was not selected for individual examination 
in this administrative review, but which qualified for a separate rate, 
the assessment rate will be equal to the weighted-average dumping 
margin assigned to Vinh Hoan in the final results of this review.
    For entries that were not reported in the U.S. sales databases 
submitted by Vinh Hoan, Commerce will instruct CBP to liquidate such 
entries at the Vietnam-wide rate.

Cash Deposit Requirements

    The following cash deposit requirements will be effective upon 
publication of the final results of this review for all shipments of 
fish fillets

[[Page 84302]]

from Vietnam entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on 
or after the publication date, as provided by sections 751(a)(2)(C) of 
the Act: (1) For the companies listed above that have a separate rate, 
the cash deposit rate will be equal to the weighted-average dumping 
margin established in the final results of this review (except, if the 
rate is de minimis, then no cash deposit rate will be required); (2) 
for previously-examined Vietnamese and non-Vietnamese exporters not 
listed above that received a separate rate in a prior segment of this 
proceeding, the cash deposit rate will continue to be the existing 
exporter-specific cash deposit rate; (3) for all Vietnam exporters of 
subject merchandise that have not been found to be entitled to a 
separate rate, the cash deposit rate will be that for the Vietnam-wide 
entity (i.e., $2.39 per kilogram); and (4) for all non-Vietnamese 
exporters of subject merchandise that have not received their own rate, 
the cash deposit rate will be the rate applicable to the Vietnam 
exporter that supplied that non-Vietnam 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 the 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

    We are issuing and publishing the preliminary results of this 
review in accordance with sections 751(a)(1) and 777(i)(1) of the Act 
and 19 CFR 351.213.

    Dated: December 15, 2020
Jeffrey I. Kessler,
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.

Appendix I

List of Topics Discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum

I. Summary
II. Background
III. Scope of the Order
IV. Partial Rescission of Review
V. Preliminary Determination of No Shipments
VI. Discussion of the Methodology
VII. Recommendation

Appendix II

Companies for Which We Are Rescinding the Review

1. An Giang Agriculture and Food Import-Export Joint Stock Company 
(also known as Afiex, An Giang Agriculture and Foods Import-Export 
Joint Stock Company, An Giang Agriculture and Food Import-Export 
Company, An Giang Agriculture and Foods Import and Export Company, 
or An Giang Agriculture and Foods Import-Export Company)
2. An My Fish Joint Stock Company (aka Anmyfish or Anmyfishco)
3. An Phu Seafood Corporation (aka ASEAFOOD or An Phu Seafood Corp.)
4. Asia Commerce Fisheries Joint Stock Company (aka Acomfish JSC or 
Acomfish)
5. Bien Dong Hau Giang Seafood Joint Stock Company (aka Bien Dong HG 
or Bien Dong Hau Giang Seafood Joint Stock Co.)
6. Bien Dong Seafood Company Ltd. (aka Bien Dong, Bien Dong Seafood, 
Bien Dong Seafood Co., Ltd., Biendong Seafood Co., Ltd., or Biendong 
Seafood Limited Liabilty Company)
7. Binh An Seafood Joint Stock Company (aka Binh An or Binh An 
Seafood Joint Stock Co.)
8. Da Nang Seaproducts Import-Export Corporation (aka Da Nang or Da 
Nang Seaproducts Import/Export Corp.)
9. GODACO Seafood Joint Stock Company (aka GODACO, GODACO Seafood 
J.S.C., GODACO Seafood, or GODACO_SEAFOOD)
10. Hiep Thanh Seafood Joint Stock Company (aka Hiep Thanh or Hiep 
Thanh Seafood Joint Stock Co.)
11. International Development & Investment Corporation (aka IDI or 
International Development and Investment Corporation
12. Ngoc Ha Co. Ltd. Food Processing and Trading (aka Ngoc Ha or 
Ngoc Ha Co., Ltd. Foods Processing and Trading)
13. Saigon-Mekong Fishery Co., Ltd. (aka SAMEFICO or Saigon Mekong 
Fishery Co., Ltd.)
14. Sunrise Corporation
15. TG Fishery Holdings Corporation (aka TG)
16. To Chau Joint Stock Company (aka TOCHAU, TOCHAU JSC, or TOCHAU 
Joint Stock Company

[FR Doc. 2020-28592 Filed 12-23-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P