[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 172 (Thursday, September 7, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 61520-61522]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-19350]



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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-533-871]


Finished Carbon Steel Flanges From India: Preliminary Results of 
Antidumping Duty Administrative Review; 2021-2022

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

SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily finds 
that producers and/or exporters subject to this administrative review 
made sales of subject merchandise at less than normal value (NV) during 
the period of review (POR) August 1, 2021, through July 31, 2022. 
Interested parties are invited to comment on these preliminary results.

DATES: Applicable September 7, 2023.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Fred Baker or Preston Cox, AD/CVD 
Operations, Office VI, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade 
Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue 
NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-2924 or (202) 482-5041, 
respectively.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background

    On August 24, 2017, Commerce published in the Federal Register the 
antidumping duty order on finished carbon steel flanges from India.\1\ 
On August 2, 2022, Commerce published a notice of opportunity to 
request an administrative review of the Order.\2\ On October 11, 2022, 
based on timely requests for review, in accordance with 19 CFR 
351.221(c)(1)(i), we initiated an administrative review of the Order 
with respect to 42 companies.\3\ On November 3, 2022, Commerce selected 
Norma Group \4\ and R. N. Gupta & Company Limited (RNG) as mandatory 
respondents in this administrative review.\5\ On April 25, 2023 and 
August 16, 2023, in accordance with section 751(a)(3)(A) of the Tariff 
Act of 1930, as amended (the Act), and 19 CFR 351.213(h)(2), Commerce 
extended the time period for issuing these preliminary results until no 
later than August 31, 2023.\6\
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    \1\ See Finished Carbon Steel Flanges from India and Italy: 
Antidumping Duty Orders, 82 FR 40136 (August 24, 2017) (Order).
    \2\ See Antidumping or Countervailing Duty Order, Finding, or 
Suspended Investigation; Opportunity to Request Administrative 
Review and Join Annual Inquiry Service List, 87 FR 47187, 47188 
(August 2, 2022).
    \3\ See Initiation of Antidumping and Countervailing Duty 
Administrative Reviews, 87 FR 61278 (October 11, 2022).
    \4\ In prior segments of this proceeding, we determined that 
Norma (India) Limited, USK Exports Private Limited, Uma Shanker 
Khandelwal & Co., and Bansidhar Chiranjilal were affiliated and 
should be treated as a single entity (Norma Group). In this review, 
Norma (India) Limited and its affiliated entities have affirmed that 
the factual basis on which Commerce made its prior determinations 
has not changed. Therefore, Commerce continues to treat these four 
companies as a single entity. See Norma Group's Letter, 
``Supplemental Response to Section A, B, C and D of Anti-Dumping 
duty Original Questionnaire,'' dated May 4, 2023 at S2-6; see also, 
e.g., Finished Carbon Steel Flanges from India: Preliminary 
Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value and Postponement of 
Final Determination, 82 FR 9719 (February 8, 2017), and accompanying 
Preliminary Decision Memorandum, at 4-5, unchanged in Finished 
Carbon Steel Flanges from India: Final Determination of Sales at 
Less Than Fair Value, 82 FR 29483 (June 29, 2017).
    \5\ See Memorandum, ``Respondent Selection,'' dated November 3, 
2022.
    \6\ See Memorandum, ``Extension of Deadline for Preliminary 
Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative
    Review,'' dated August 16, 2023; see also Memorandum, 
``Extension of Deadline for Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty 
Administrative Review,'' dated April 25, 2023.
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    For a complete description of the events that followed the 
initiation of this review, see the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.\7\ 
A list of topics included in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum is 
included as Appendix I 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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    \7\ See Memorandum, ``Decision Memorandum for the Preliminary 
Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review: Finished Carbon 
Steel Flanges from India; 2021-2022,'' dated concurrently with, and 
hereby adopted by, this notice (Preliminary Decision Memorandum).
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Scope of the Order

    The merchandise covered by the Order is finished carbon steel 
flanges. For a complete description of the scope of the Order, see the 
Preliminary Decision Memorandum.

Methodology

    Commerce is conducting this review in accordance with sections 
751(a)(1)(B) and (2) of the Act. Export price is calculated in 
accordance with section 772 of the Act. NV is calculated in accordance 
with section 773 of the Act. For a full description of the methodology 
underlying these preliminary results, see the Preliminary Decision 
Memorandum.

Rate for Non-Selected Companies

    The Act and Commerce's regulations do not address the establishment 
of a rate to be applied to companies not selected for individual 
examination when Commerce limits its examination in an administrative 
review pursuant to section 777A(c)(2) of the Act. Generally, Commerce 
looks to section 735(c)(5) of the Act, which provides instructions for 
calculating the all-others rate in a market economy investigation, for 
guidance when calculating the rate for companies which were not 
selected for individual examination in an administrative review. Under 
section 735(c)(5)(A) of the Act, the all-others rate is normally ``an 
amount equal to the weighted average of the estimated weighted average 
dumping margins established for exporters and producers individually 
investigated, excluding any zero or de minimis margins, and any margins 
determined entirely {on the basis of facts available{time} .''
    In this administrative review, we preliminarily calculated 
weighted-average dumping margins for Norma Group and RNG that are not 
zero, de minimis (i.e., less than 0.5 percent), or determined entirely 
on the basis of facts available. Accordingly, consistent with guidance 
in section 735(c)(5)(A) of the Act, Commerce is preliminarily assigning 
to the companies not individually examined a margin of 1.00 percent, 
which is the weighted average of Norma Group's margin and RNG's margin 
based on publicly ranged U.S. sales values.\8\ The companies not 
selected for individual examination are listed in Appendix II.
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    \8\ See Memorandum, ``Calculation of Margin for Respondents Not 
Selected for Individual Examination,'' dated concurrently with this 
notice.
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Preliminary Results of Review

    Commerce preliminarily determines that the following estimated 
weighted-average dumping margins exist for the period August 1, 2021, 
through July 31, 2022:

[[Page 61521]]



------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                               Weighted-
                                                                average
                      Producer/exporter                         dumping
                                                                margin
                                                               (percent)
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R. N. Gupta & Company Limited...............................        1.15
Norma (India) Limited/USK Exports Private Limited/Uma               0.70
 Shanker Khandelwal & Co./Bansidhar Chiranjilal.............
Non-Selected Companies \9\..................................        1.00
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Disclosure and Public Comment

    Commerce intends to disclose to interested parties the calculations 
performed for these preliminary results within five days of the date of 
publication of this notice.\10\ Interested parties may submit case 
briefs no later than 30 days after the date of publication of this 
notice.\11\ Rebuttal briefs, limited to issues raised in case briefs, 
may be filed no later than seven days after the date for filing case 
briefs.\12\ 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.\13\
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    \9\ See Appendix II for a list of companies not selected for 
individual examination.
    \10\ See 19 CFR 351.224(b).
    \11\ See 19 CFR 351.309(c)(1)(ii).
    \12\ See 19 CFR 351.309(d)(1) and (2); see also Temporary Rule 
Modifying AD/CVD Service Requirements Due to COVID-19; Extension of 
Effective Period, 85 FR 41363 (July 10, 2020) (Temporary Rule).
    \13\ See 19 CFR 351.309(c)(2) and (d)(2).
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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, U.S. Department of Commerce, 
filed electronically via ACCESS, within 30 days after the date of 
publication of this notice. Requests should contain: (1) the party's 
name, address, and telephone number; (2) the number of participants; 
(3) whether any participant is a foreign national; and (4) a list of 
the issues to be discussed. Issues raised in the hearing will be 
limited to those raised in the respective case and rebuttal briefs.\14\ 
If a request for a hearing is made, Commerce intends to hold the 
hearing at a date and time to be determined. Parties should confirm the 
date and time of the hearing two days before the scheduled date.
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    \14\ See 19 CFR 351.310(c).
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    All briefs and hearing requests must be filed electronically using 
ACCESS and received successfully in their entirety by 5 p.m. Eastern 
Time on the due date. Note that Commerce has temporarily modified 
certain of its requirements for serving documents containing business 
proprietary information, until further notice.\15\
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    \15\ See Temporary Rule.
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    Unless the deadline is extended pursuant to section 751(a)(3)(A) of 
the Act and 19 CFR 351.213(h)(2), 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 any written briefs, no 
later than 120 days after the date of publication of these preliminary 
results.

Verification

    On October 14, 2022, Weldbend Corporation, a domestic interested 
party, requested that Commerce conduct verification of Norma Group's 
and RNG's responses.\16\ Accordingly, as provided in section 782(i)(3) 
of the Act, we verified information relied upon for the preliminary 
results of this review.\17\
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    \16\ See Weldbend Corporation's Letter, ``Request for In-Person 
Verification,'' dated October 14, 2022.
    \17\ See Memorandum, ``Sales Verification Report for Norma 
(India) Limited; USK Exports Private Limited; Uma Shanker Khandelwal 
& Co., Ltd.; Bansidhar Chiranjilal,'' dated concurrently with this 
notice; see also Memorandum, ``Sales Verification Report for R.N. 
Gupta & Company Limited,'' dated concurrently with this notice.
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Assessment Rates

    Upon completion of this administrative review, Commerce shall 
determine, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) shall assess, 
antidumping duties on all appropriate entries. If the weighted-average 
dumping margin for a mandatory respondent is not zero or de minimis in 
the final results of this review, we will calculate an importer-
specific assessment rate on the basis of the ratio of the total amount 
of dumping calculated for each importer's examined sales and the total 
entered value of such sales in accordance with 19 CFR 
351.212(b)(1).\18\ If the weighted-average dumping margin is zero or de 
minimis in the final results of review, or if an importer-specific 
assessment rate is zero or de minimis, Commerce will instruct CBP to 
liquidate appropriate entries without regard to antidumping duties.\19\ 
For entries of subject merchandise during the period of review produced 
by the respondents for which they did not know its merchandise was 
destined for the United States, we will instruct CBP to liquidate 
unreviewed entries pursuant to the reseller policy, i.e., the 
assessment rate for such entries will be the all-others rate 
established in the investigation if there is no rate for the 
intermediate company(ies) involved in the transaction.\20\
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    \18\ See Antidumping Proceedings: Calculation of the Weighted-
Average Dumping Margin and Assessment Rate in Certain Antidumping 
Proceedings: Final Modification, 77 FR 8101, 8103 (February 14, 
2012).
    \19\ Id., 77 FR at 8102-03; see also 19 CFR 351.106(c)(2).
    \20\ See Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Proceedings: 
Assessment of Antidumping Duties, 68 FR 23954 (May 6, 2003).
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    For the companies which were not selected for individual 
examination, we intend to assign an antidumping duty assessment rate 
equal to the weighted-average dumping margin determined for the non-
examined companies in the final results of review.
    Commerce intends to issue assessment instructions to CBP no earlier 
than 35 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). 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 
cash deposits of estimated antidumping duties, where applicable.\21\
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    \21\ See section 751(a)(2)(C) of the Act.
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Cash Deposit Requirements

    The following cash deposit requirements will be effective upon 
publication in the Federal Register of the final results of this 
administrative review for all shipments of the subject merchandise 
entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after the 
date of publication, as provided by section 751(a)(2)(C) of the Act: 
(1) the cash deposit rate for companies subject to this review will be 
equal to the company-specific weighted-average dumping margin 
established in the final results of this administrative review; (2) for 
merchandise exported by a company not covered in this review but 
covered in a prior segment of the proceeding, the cash deposit rate 
will continue to be the company-specific rate published in the 
completed segment for the most recent period; (3) if the exporter is 
not a firm covered in this review, a prior review, or the less-than-
fair-value investigation, but the producer is, then the cash deposit 
rate will be the rate established in the most recently completed 
segment of the proceeding for the producer of the merchandise; and (4) 
the cash deposit rate for all other producers or exporters will 
continue to be 8.91 percent, the all-others rate established in the 
less-than-

[[Page 61522]]

fair-value investigation.\22\ These cash deposit requirements, when 
imposed, shall remain in effect until further notice.
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    \22\ See Order, 82 FR at 40138.
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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 review period. 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

    These preliminary results of review 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: August 31, 2023.
Lisa W. Wang,
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. Rates for Non-Examined Companies
V. Discussion of the Methodology
VI. Currency Conversion
VII. Recommendation

Appendix II

List of Companies Not Selected for Individual Examination

1. Adinath International
2. Allena Group
3. Alloyed Steel
4. Balkrishna Steel Forge Pvt. Ltd.
5. Bebitz Flanges Works Private Limited
6. BFN Forgings Private Limited
7. C.D. Industries
8. Cetus Engineering Private Limited
9. CHW Forge
10. CHW Forge Pvt. Ltd.
11. Citizen Metal Depot
12. Corum Flange
13. DN Forge Industries
14. Echjay Forgings Limited
15. Falcon Valves and Flanges Private Limited
16. Heubach International
17. Hindon Forge Pvt. Ltd.
18. Jai Auto Private Limited
19. Kinnari Steel Corporation
20. M F Rings and Bearing Races Ltd.
21. Mascot Metal Manufactures
22. Munish Forge Private Limited
23. OM Exports
24. Punjab Steel Works (PSW)
25. R. D. Forge
26. Raaj Sagar Steel
27. Ravi Ratan Metal Industries
28. Rolex Fittings India Pvt. Ltd.
29. Rollwell Forge Engineering Components and Flanges
30. Rollwell Forge Pvt. Ltd.
31. SHM (ShinHeung Machinery)
32. Siddhagiri Metal & Tubes
33. Sizer India
34. Steel Shape India
35. Sudhir Forgings Pvt. Ltd.
36. Tirupati Forge
37. Umashanker Khandelwal Forging Limited

[FR Doc. 2023-19350 Filed 9-6-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P