[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 64 (Tuesday, April 2, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 22666-22668]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-06949]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[C-331-806]


Frozen Warmwater Shrimp From Ecuador: Preliminary Affirmative 
Countervailing Duty Determination, and Alignment of Final Determination 
With the Final Antidumping Duty Determination

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

SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily 
determines that countervailable subsidies are being provided to 
producers and exporters of frozen warmwater shrimp (shrimp) from 
Ecuador. The period of investigation (POI) is January 1, 2022, through 
December 31, 2022. Interested parties are invited to comment on this 
preliminary determination.

DATES: Applicable April 2, 2024.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Reginald Anadio or Zachary Shaykin, 
AD/CVD Operations, Office IV, Enforcement and Compliance, International 
Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution 
Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-3166 or (202) 
482-5377, respectively.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    This preliminary determination is made in accordance with section 
703(b) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act). On November 21, 
2023, Commerce published in the Federal Register the notice of 
initiation of this investigation.\1\ On December 7, 2023, Commerce 
postponed the preliminary determination until March 25, 2024.\2\
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    \1\ See Frozen Warmwater Shrimp from Ecuador, India, Indonesia, 
and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam: Initiation of Countervailing 
Duty Investigations, 88 FR 81053 (November 21, 2023) (Initiation 
Notice).
    \2\ See Frozen Warmwater Shrimp from Ecuador, India, Indonesia, 
and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam: Postponement of Preliminary 
Determinations in the Countervailing Duty Investigations, 88 FR 
85216 (December 7, 2023).
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    For a complete description of events that followed the initiation 
of this investigation, see the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.\3\ A 
list of topics discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum is 
included as Appendix II 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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    \3\ See Memorandum, ``Decision Memorandum for the Preliminary 
Affirmative Determination of the Countervailing Duty Investigation 
of frozen warmwater shrimp from Ecuador,'' dated concurrently with, 
and hereby adopted by, this notice (Preliminary Decision 
Memorandum).
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Scope of the Investigation

    The product covered by this investigation is shrimp from Ecuador. 
For a complete description of the scope of this investigation, see 
Appendix I.

Scope Comments

    In accordance with the Preamble to Commerce's regulations,\4\ in 
the Initiation Notice Commerce set aside a period of time for parties 
to raise issues regarding product coverage (i.e., scope).\5\ No 
interested party commented on the scope of the investigation as it 
appeared in the Initiation Notice.
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    \4\ See Antidumping Duties; Countervailing Duties, Final Rule, 
62 FR 27296, 27323 (May 19, 1997) (Preamble).
    \5\ See Initiation Notice, 88 FR at 81054.
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Methodology

    Commerce is conducting this investigation in accordance with 
section 701 of the Act. For each subsidy

[[Page 22667]]

program 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.\6\ For a full description of the methodology 
underlying our preliminary determination, see the Preliminary Decision 
Memorandum.
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    \6\ 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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Alignment

    As noted in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum, in accordance with 
section 705(a)(1) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.210(b)(4), Commerce is 
aligning the final countervailing duty (CVD) determination in this 
investigation with the final determinations in the companion 
antidumping duty (AD) investigations of shrimp from Ecuador and 
Indonesia, based on a request made by the petitioner.\7\ Consequently, 
the final CVD determination will be issued on the same date as the 
final AD determinations, which are currently scheduled to be issued no 
later than August 5, 2024, unless postponed.
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    \7\ See Petitioner's Letter, ``Request to Alignment,'' dated 
February 22, 2024. The petitioner is the American Shrimp Processors 
Association.
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All-Others Rate

    Sections 703(d) and 705(c)(5)(A) of the Act provide that, in the 
preliminary determination, Commerce shall determine an estimated all-
others rate for companies not individually examined. This rate shall be 
an amount equal to the weighted average of the estimated subsidy rates 
established for those companies individually examined, excluding any 
zero and de minimis rates and any rates based entirely under section 
776 of the Act.
    In this investigation, Commerce preliminarily calculated total net 
subsidy rates for Industrial Pesquera Santa Priscila S.A. (Santa 
Priscila) and Sociedad Nacional de Galapagos C.A. (SONGA) that are not 
zero, de minimis, or based entirely on the facts otherwise available. 
Because Commerce calculated individual estimated countervailable 
subsidy rates for Santa Priscila and SONGA that are not zero, de 
minimis, or based entirely on the facts otherwise available, we have 
preliminarily calculated the all-others rate using a simple average of 
the individual estimated subsidy rates calculated for the examined 
respondents.\8\
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    \8\ When two respondents are under examination, Commerce 
normally calculates (A) a weighted-average of the estimated subsidy 
rates calculated for the examined respondents using each company's 
proprietary U.S. sale quantities for the merchandise under 
consideration; (B) a simple average of the estimated subsidy rates 
calculated for the examined respondents; and (C) a weighted-average 
of the estimated subsidy rates calculated for the examined 
respondents using each company's publicly-ranged U.S. sale 
quantities for the merchandise under consideration. Commerce then 
compares (B) and (C) to (A) and selects the rate closest to (A) as 
the most appropriate rate for all other producers and exporters. 
See, e.g., Ball Bearings and Parts Thereof from France, Germany, 
Italy, Japan, and the United Kingdom: Final Results of Antidumping 
Duty Administrative Reviews, Final Results of Changed-Circumstances 
Review, and Revocation of an Order in Part, 75 FR 53661, 53663 
(September 1, 2010). We currently do not have on the record the 
necessary publicly-ranged sales data to conduct the rate comparison 
discussed above. Therefore, for purposes of the preliminary 
determination, we calculated the all-others rate as the simple 
average of the total net subsidy rates calculated for the two 
mandatory respondents. We will solicit the necessary publicly-ranged 
sales data after the issuance of the preliminary determination.
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Preliminary Determination

    Commerce preliminarily determines that the following estimated 
countervailable subsidy rates exist:
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    \9\ As discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum, 
Commerce preliminarily determines Industrial Pesquera Santa Priscila 
S.A. is cross-owned with Manesil S.A., Produmar S.A., Tropack S.A., 
and Egidiosa S.A.
    \10\ As discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum, 
Commerce preliminarily determines Sociedad Nacional de Galapagos 
C.A. is cross-owned with Naturisa S.A., Holding Sola & Sola 
Solacciones S.A., and Empacadora Champmar S.A.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                           Subsidy rate
                    Producer/exporter                       (percent ad
                                                             valorem)
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Industrial Pesquera Santa Priscila S.A.\9\..............           13.41
Sociedad Nacional de Galapagos C.A.\10\.................            1.69
All Others..............................................            7.55
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Suspension of Liquidation

    In accordance with section 703(d)(1)(B) and (d)(2) of the Act, 
Commerce will direct U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to 
suspend liquidation of entries of subject merchandise as described in 
the scope of the investigation section entered, or withdrawn from 
warehouse, for consumption on or after the date of publication of this 
notice in the Federal Register. Further, pursuant to 19 CFR 351.205(d), 
Commerce will instruct CBP to require a cash deposit equal to the rates 
indicated above.

Disclosure

    Commerce intends to disclose its calculations and analysis 
performed to interested parties in this preliminary determination 
within five days of its public announcement, or if there is no public 
announcement, within five days of the date of the publication of this 
notice, in accordance with 19 CFR 351.224(b).

Verification

    As provided in section 782(i)(1) of the Act, Commerce intends to 
verify the information relied upon in making its final determination.

Public Comment

    Case briefs or other written comments may be submitted to the 
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance no later than seven 
days after the date on which the last verification report is issued in 
this investigation. Rebuttal briefs, limited to issues raised in the 
case briefs, may be filed not later than five days after the date for 
filing case briefs.\11\ Interested parties who submit case briefs or 
rebuttal briefs in this proceeding must submit: (1) a table of contents 
listing each issue; and (2) a table of authorities.\12\
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    \11\ See 19 CFR 351.309(d); see also Administrative Protective 
Order, Service, and Other Procedures in Antidumping and 
Countervailing Duty Proceedings, 88 FR 67069, 67077 (September 29, 
2023) (APO and Service Final Rule).
    \12\ See 19 351.309(c)(2) and (d)(2).
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    As provided under 19 CFR 351.309(c)(2) and (d)(2), in prior 
proceedings we have encouraged interested parties to provide an 
executive summary of their brief that should be limited to five pages 
total, including footnotes. In this investigation, we instead request 
that interested parties provide at the beginning of their briefs a 
public, executive summary for each issue raised in their briefs.\13\ 
Further, we request that interested parties limit their executive 
summary of each issue to no more than 450 words, not including 
citations. We intend to use the executive summaries as the basis of the 
comment summaries included in the issues and decision memorandum that 
will accompany the final determination in this investigation. We 
request that interested parties include footnotes for relevant 
citations in the executive summary of each issue. Note that Commerce 
has amended certain of its requirements pertaining to the service of 
documents in 19 CFR 351.303(f).\14\
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    \13\ We use the term ``issue'' here to describe an argument that 
Commerce would normally address in a comment of the Issues and 
Decision Memorandum.
    \14\ See APO and Service Final Rule.
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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 written request to the Assistant Secretary for 
Enforcement and Compliance, U.S. Department of

[[Page 22668]]

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. Oral 
presentations at the hearing will be limited to issues raised in the 
briefs. If a request for a hearing is made, Commerce intends to hold 
the hearing at a time and date to be determined.\15\ Parties should 
confirm by telephone the date, time, and location of the hearing two 
days before the scheduled date.
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    \15\ See 19 CFR 351.310(d).
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U.S. International Trade Commission Notification

    In accordance with section 703(f) of the Act, Commerce will notify 
the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) of its determination. If 
the final determination is affirmative, the ITC will determine before 
the later of 120 days after the date of this preliminary determination 
or 45 days after the final determination whether imports of aluminum 
extrusions from Indonesia are materially injuring, or threaten material 
injury to, the U.S. industry.

Notification to Interested Parties

    This determination is issued and published pursuant to sections 
703(f) and 777(i) of the Act, and 19 CFR 351.205(c).

    Dated: March 25, 2024.
Abdelali Elouaradia,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.

Appendix I

Scope of the Investigation

    The scope of this investigation includes certain frozen 
warmwater shrimp and prawns whether wild-caught (ocean harvested) or 
farm-raised (produced by aquaculture), head-on or head-off, shell-on 
or peeled, tail-on or tail-off, deveined or not deveined, cooked or 
raw, or otherwise processed in frozen form. ``Tails'' in this 
context means the tail fan, which includes the telson and the 
uropods.
    The frozen warmwater shrimp and prawn products included in the 
scope, regardless of definitions in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule 
of the United States (HTSUS), are products which are processed from 
warmwater shrimp and prawns through freezing and which are sold in 
any count size.
    The products described above may be processed from any species 
of warmwater shrimp and prawns. Warmwater shrimp and prawns are 
generally classified in, but are not limited to, the Penaeidae 
family. Some examples of the farmed and wild-caught warmwater 
species include, but are not limited to, whiteleg shrimp (Penaeus 
vannemei), banana prawn (Penaeus merguiensis), fleshy prawn (Penaeus 
chinensis), giant river prawn (Macrobrachium rosenbergii), giant 
tiger prawn (Penaeus monodon), redspotted shrimp (Penaeus 
brasiliensis), southern brown shrimp (Penaeus subtilis), southern 
pink shrimp (Penaeus notialis), southern rough shrimp (Trachypenaeus 
curvirostris), southern white shrimp (Penaeus schmitti), blue shrimp 
(Penaeus stylirostris), western white shrimp (Penaeus occidentalis), 
and Indian white prawn (Penaeus indicus).
    Frozen shrimp and prawns that are packed with marinade, spices 
or sauce are included in the scope. In addition, food preparations, 
which are not ``prepared meals,'' that contain more than 20 percent 
by weight of shrimp or prawn are also included in the scope.
    Excluded from the scope are: (1) breaded shrimp and prawns 
(HTSUS subheading 1605.20.10.20); (2) shrimp and prawns generally 
classified in the Pandalidae family and commonly referred to as 
coldwater shrimp, in any state of processing; (3) fresh shrimp and 
prawns whether shell-on or peeled (HTSUS subheadings 0306.36.0020 
and 0306.36.0040); (4) shrimp and prawns in prepared meals (HTSUS 
subheading 1605.20.05.10); (5) dried shrimp and prawns; (6) canned 
warmwater shrimp and prawns (HTSUS subheading 1605.20.10.40); (7) 
certain dusted shrimp; and (8) certain battered shrimp. Dusted 
shrimp is a shrimp-based product: (1) that is produced from fresh 
(or thawed-from-frozen) and peeled shrimp; (2) to which a 
``dusting'' layer of rice or wheat flour of at least 95 percent 
purity has been applied; (3) with the entire surface of the shrimp 
flesh thoroughly and evenly coated with the flour; (4) with the 
nonshrimp content of the end product constituting between four and 
10 percent of the product's total weight after being dusted, but 
prior to being frozen; and (5) that is subjected to IQF freezing 
immediately after application of the dusting layer. Battered shrimp 
is a shrimp-based product that, when dusted in accordance with the 
definition of dusting above, is coated with a wet viscous layer 
containing egg and/or milk, and par-fried.
    The products covered by the scope are currently classified under 
the following HTSUS subheadings: 0306.17.0004, 0306.17.0005, 
0306.17.0007, 0306.17.0008, 0306.17.0010, 0306.17.0011, 
0306.17.0013, 0306.17.0014, 0306.17.0016, 0306.17.0017, 
0306.17.0019, 0306.17.0020, 0306.17.0022, 0306.17.0023, 
0306.17.0025, 0306.17.0026, 0306.17.0028, 0306.17.0029, 
0306.17.0041, 0306.17.0042, 1605.21.1030, and 1605.29.1010. These 
HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience and for customs 
purposes only and are not dispositive, but rather the written 
description of the scope is dispositive.

Appendix II

I. Summary
II. Background
III. Scope Comments
IV. Scope of the Investigation
V. Diversification of Ecuador's Economy
VI. Injury Test
VII. Subsidies Valuation
VIII. Benchmarks and Discount Rates
IX. Analysis of Programs
X. Recommendation

[FR Doc. 2024-06949 Filed 4-1-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P