[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 86 (Thursday, May 4, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 28487-28489]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-09425]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[C-533-896]


Common Alloy Aluminum Sheet From India: Preliminary Results of 
Countervailing Duty Administrative Review and Partial Rescission; 2020-
2021

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

SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily 
determines that producers/exporters of

[[Page 28488]]

common alloy aluminum sheet (aluminum sheet) from India received 
countervailable subsidies during the period of review (POR) August 14, 
2020, through December 31, 2021. Interested parties are invited to 
comment on these preliminary results.

DATES: Applicable May 4, 2023.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Benito Ballesteros, AD/CVD Operations, 
Office IX, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade 
Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue 
NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-4725.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background

    On April 27, 2021, Commerce published the countervailing duty order 
on aluminum sheet from India.\1\ On June 9, 2022, Commerce published in 
the Federal Register a notice of initiation of an administrative review 
of the Order.\2\ On December 5, 2022, Commerce extended the deadline 
for the preliminary results of this administrative review until April 
28, 2023.\3\
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    \1\ See Common Alloy Aluminum Sheet from Bahrain, India, and the 
Republic of Turkey: Countervailing Duty Orders, 86 FR 22144 (April 
27, 2021) (Order).
    \2\ See Initiation of Antidumping and Countervailing Duty 
Administrative Reviews, 87 FR 35165 (June 9, 2022).
    \3\ See Memorandum, ``Extension of Deadline for Preliminary 
Results of Countervailing Duty Administrative Review; 2020-2021,'' 
dated December 5, 2022.
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    For a complete description of the events that followed the 
initiation of this review, see the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.\4\ 
A list of topics discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum is 
included as the appendix to this notice. 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 https://access.trade.gov. In addition, a complete 
version of the Preliminary Decision Memorandum can be accessed directly 
at https://access.trade.gov/public/FRNoticesListLayout.aspx.
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    \4\ See Memorandum, ``Decision Memorandum for the Preliminary 
Results of the Countervailing Duty Administrative Review of Common 
Alloy Aluminum Sheet from India; 2020-2021,'' dated concurrently 
with, and hereby adopted by, this notice (Preliminary Decision 
Memorandum).
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Rescission of Administrative Review, In Part

    Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.213(d)(3), Commerce's practice is to rescind 
an administrative review of a countervailing duty order when there are 
no reviewable entries of subject merchandise during the POR for which 
liquidation is suspended.\5\ Normally, upon completion of an 
administrative review, the suspended entries are liquidated at the 
countervailing duty assessment rate calculated for the review 
period.\6\ Therefore, for an administrative review of a company to be 
conducted, there must be a reviewable, suspended entry that Commerce 
can instruct U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to liquidate at 
the calculated countervailing duty assessment rate calculated for the 
review period.\7\
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    \5\ See, e.g., Lightweight Thermal Paper from the People's 
Republic of China: Notice of Rescission of Countervailing Duty 
Administrative Review; 2015, 82 FR 14349 (March 20, 2017); see also 
Circular Welded Carbon Quality Steel Pipe from the People's Republic 
of China: Rescission of Countervailing Duty Administrative Review; 
2017, 84 FR 14650 (April 11, 2019).
    \6\ See 19 CFR 351.212(b)(2).
    \7\ See 19 CFR 351.213(d)(3).
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    According to the CBP import data, one company, Virgo Aluminum 
Limited (Virgo), did not have a reviewable entry of subject merchandise 
during the POR for which liquidation is suspended.\8\ Therefore, we 
notified interested parties that we intended to rescind this 
administrative review with respect to Virgo and provided parties an 
opportunity to submit comments, including factual information to 
demonstrate whether there were reviewable entries during the POR for 
Virgo.\9\ We received comments from Virgo on our intent to rescind this 
review.\10\ However, in response to Commerce's supplemental 
questionnaire, Virgo was unable to provide evidence of an entry of 
subject merchandise during the POR.\11\ Therefore, in the absence of 
reviewable, suspended entries of subject merchandise during the POR, in 
accordance with 19 CFR 351.213(d)(3), we are rescinding this 
administrative review with respect to Virgo. For further discussion, 
see the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.
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    \8\ See Memorandum, ``Release of Customs and Border Protection 
Data Query,'' dated June 9, 2022.
    \9\ See Memorandum, ``Notice of Intent to Rescind Review, In 
Part,'' dated July 6, 2022.
    \10\ See Virgo's Letter, ``Virgo' Comments Commerce's Intent to 
Rescind the Administrative Review,'' dated July 25, 2022.
    \11\ See Virgo's Letter, ``Supplemental Response,'' dated 
September 26, 2022, at 1.
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Scope of the Order

    The merchandise covered by this Order is aluminum sheet from India. 
For a complete description of the scope of the Order, see the 
Preliminary Decision Memorandum.

Methodology

    Commerce is conducting this review in accordance with section 
751(a)(l)(A) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act). For each 
of the subsidy programs found to be countervailable, Commerce 
preliminarily determines that there is a subsidy, i.e., a financial 
contribution by an ``authority'' that gives rise to a benefit to the 
recipient, and that the subsidy is specific.\12\ For a full description 
of the methodology underlying our conclusions, see the Preliminary 
Decision Memorandum.
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    \12\ See sections 771(5)(B) and (D) of the Act regarding 
financial contribution; section 771(5)(E) of the Act regarding 
benefit; and section 771(5A) of the Act regarding specificity.
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Preliminary Results of Review

    As a result of this review, we preliminarily determine that, for 
2020 and 2021, the following estimated countervailable subsidy rates 
exist:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                           Subsidy rate    Subsidy rate
                 Company                   2020 (percent   2021 (percent
                                            ad valorem)     ad valorem)
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Hindalco Industries Limited \13\........           37.90           32.43
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Assessment Rates
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    \13\ As discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum, 
Commerce has found the following company to be cross-owned with 
Hindalco Industries Limited (Hindalco): Utkal Alumina International 
Limited.
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    Consistent with section 751(a)(2)(C) of the Act and 19 CFR 
351.212(b)(2), upon issuance of the final results, Commerce shall 
determine, and CBP shall assess, countervailing duties on all 
appropriate entries covered by this review. Commerce intends to issue 
assessment instructions to CBP no earlier than 35

[[Page 28489]]

days after the date of publication of the final results of this review 
in the Federal Register. If a timely summons is filed at the U.S. Court 
of International Trade, the assessment instructions will direct CBP not 
to liquidate relevant entries until the time for parties to file a 
request for a statutory injunction has expired (i.e., within 90 days of 
publication).
    For Virgo, the company for which we are rescinding this 
administrative review, Commerce will instruct CBP to assess 
countervailing duties on all appropriate entries at a rate equal to the 
cash deposit of estimated countervailing duties required at the time of 
entry, or withdrawal from warehouse, for consumption, during the period 
August 14, 2020, through December 31, 2021, in accordance with 19 CFR 
351.212(c)(l)(i). Commerce intends to issue appropriate assessment 
instructions directly to CBP no earlier than 35 days after the date of 
publication of this notice in the Federal Register.

Cash Deposit Requirements

    Pursuant to section 751(a)(1) of the Act, Commerce also intends to 
instruct CBP to collect cash deposits of estimated countervailing 
duties in the amounts calculated for the year 2021 for Hindalco with 
regard to shipments of subject merchandise entered, or withdrawn from 
warehouse, for consumption on or after the date of publication of the 
final results of this review. For all non-reviewed firms, CBP will 
continue to collect cash deposits of estimated countervailing duties at 
the all-others rate or the most recent company-specific rate applicable 
to the company, as appropriate. These cash deposit requirements, when 
imposed, shall remain in effect until further notice.

Disclosure

    Commerce intends to disclose to parties to this proceeding the 
calculations performed in reaching the preliminary results within five 
days of the date of publication of these preliminary results, in 
accordance with 19 CFR 351.224(b).

Public Comment

    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 the preliminary results. Rebuttal 
briefs, limited to issues raised in case briefs, may be submitted no 
later than seven days after the deadline date for case briefs after the 
deadline date for case briefs.\14\ Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.309(c)(2) and 
(d)(2), parties who submit case 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. 
All briefs must be filed electronically using ACCESS. An electronically 
filed document must be received successfully in its entirety using 
ACCESS by 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time on the established deadline. Note that 
Commerce has temporarily modified certain of its requirements for 
service documents containing business proprietary information, until 
further notice.\15\
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    \14\ See 19 CFR 351.309; see also 19 CFR 351.303 (for general 
filing requirements).
    \15\ See Temporary Rule Modifying AD/CVD Service Requirements 
Due to COVID-19; Extension of Effective Period, 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 do so within 30 days after the publication of these 
preliminary results by submitting a written request to the Assistant 
Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance using ACCESS. Requests should 
contain the party's name, address, and telephone number, and a list of 
the issues to be discussed. Issues addressed at the hearing will be 
limited to those raised in the briefs. If a request for a hearing is 
made, Commerce will inform parties of the scheduled date for the 
hearing.\16\
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    \16\ See 19 CFR 351.310.
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    Unless the deadline is extended, Commerce intends to issue the 
final results of this administrative review, including the results of 
our analysis of the issues raised by the parties in their comments, no 
later than 120 days after the date of publication of this notice, 
pursuant to section 751(a)(3)(A) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.213(h)(1).

Notification to Interested Parties

    These preliminary results are issued and published pursuant to 
sections 751(a) and 777(i) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.221(b)(4) and 
351.213(d)(4).

    Dated: April 27, 2023.
Lisa W. Wang,
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.

Appendix

List of Topics Discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum

I. Summary
II. Background
III. Scope of the Order
IV. Rescission of Administrative Review, In Part
V. Subsidies Valuation
VI. Benchmarks and Discount Rates
VII. Analysis of Programs
VIII. Recommendation

 [FR Doc. 2023-09425 Filed 5-3-23; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P