[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 86 (Thursday, May 2, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 35794-35796]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-09585]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
[C-821-825]
Phosphate Fertilizers from the Russian Federation: Preliminary
Results and Partial Rescission of the Countervailing Duty
Administrative Review; 2022
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 phosphate fertilizers from the Russian
Federation (Russia). The period of review (POR) is January 1, 2022,
through December 31, 2022.
DATES: Applicable May 2, 2024.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Shane Subler or William Horn, AD/CVD
Operations, Office VIII, Enforcement and Compliance, International
Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution
Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-6241 and (202)
482-4868, respectively.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
On June 12, 2023, Commerce published a notice of initiation of an
administrative review of the countervailing duty (CVD) order on
phosphate fertilizers from Russia.\1\ On November 27, 2023, Commerce
extended the deadline for the preliminary results of this review until
April 26, 2024.\2\
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\1\ See Initiation of Antidumping and Countervailing Duty
Administrative Reviews, 88 FR 38021 (June 12, 2023) (Initiation
Notice).
\2\ See Memorandum, ``Extension of Deadline for the Preliminary
Results of the 2022 Countervailing Duty Administrative Review,''
dated November 27, 2023.
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For a complete description of the events that followed the
initiation of this review, see the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.\3\
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
[[Page 35795]]
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
Results and Partial Rescission of the Countervailing Duty
Administrative Review; 2022: Phosphate Fertilizers from the Russian
Federation,'' 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 phosphate fertilizers. For
a complete description of the scope of the order, see the Preliminary
Decision Memorandum.
Rescission of Administrative Review, in Part
Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.213(d)(1), Commerce will rescind an
administrative review, in whole or in part, if the parties that
requested the review withdraw their review requests within 90 days of
the date of publication of the notice of initiation for the requested
review.\4\ On September 11, 2023, The Mosaic Company (the petitioner)
withdrew its request for the review of Industrial Group Phosphorite
LLC, a member of the EuroChem Group, within the 90-day deadline.\5\ No
other parties requested an administrative review of this company.
Therefore, in accordance with 19 CFR 351.213(d)(1), Commerce is
rescinding the administrative review of Industrial Group Phosphorite
LLC. For additional information regarding this determination, see the
Preliminary Decision Memorandum.
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\4\ See Initiation Notice, 88 FR 38021.
\5\ See Petitioner's Letter, ``Withdrawal of Request for
Countervailing Duty Administrative Review,'' dated September 11,
2023.
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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, we preliminarily
determine that there is a subsidy, i.e., a financial contribution from
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 conclusions, 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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Preliminary Results of Review
As a result of this review, we preliminarily determine the
following net countervailable subsidy rate for the period January 1,
2022, through December 31, 2022:
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\7\ As discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum,
Commerce preliminarily finds the following companies to be cross-
owned with JSC Apatit: PhosAgro Public Joint Stock Company; Limited
Liability Company PhosAgro-Region; Limited Liability Company
PhosAgro-Belgorod; Limited Liability Company PhosAgro-Don; Limited
Liability Company PhosAgro-Kuban; Limited Liability Company
PhosAgro-Lipetsk; Limited Liability Company PhosAgro-Kursk; Limited
Liability Company PhosAgro-Orel; Limited Liability Company PhosAgro-
Stavropol; Limited Liability Company PhosAgro-Volga; Limited
Liability Company PhosAgro-SeveroZapad; Limited Liability Company
PhosAgro-Tambov; and Limited Liability Company PhosAgro-Sibir.
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Subsidy
rate
Producer/exporter (percent
ad
valorem)
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Joint Stock Company Apatit \7\.............................. 18.83
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Disclosure and Public Comment
Commerce intends to disclose its calculations performed to
interested parties for these preliminary results within five days of
any public announcement or, if there is no public announcement, within
five days of the date of publication of this notice in the Federal
Register 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.\8\ A timeline for
the submission of case briefs and written comments will be notified to
interested parties at a later date. 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.\9\ Interested parties that 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.\10\
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\8\ See 19 CFR 351.309(c)(1)(ii); see also 19 CFR 351.303 for
general filing requirements.
\9\ 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 Procedures).
\10\ See 19 CFR 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 review, we instead request that
interested parties provide at the beginning of their briefs a public,
executive summary for each issue raised in their briefs.\11\ Further,
we request that interested parties limit their public executive summary
of each issue to no more than 450 words, not including citations. We
intend to use the public executive summaries as the basis of the
comment summaries included in the issues and decision memorandum that
will accompany the final results in this administrative review. We
request that interested parties include footnotes for relevant
citations in the public 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).\12\
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\11\ We use the term ``issue'' here to describe an argument that
Commerce would normally address in a comment of the Issues and
Decision Memorandum.
\12\ See APO and Service Procedures.
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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, filed electronically via
ACCESS. Requests should contain: (1) the party's name, address, and
telephone number; (2) the number of participants; and (3) a list of
issues to be discussed. Issues raised in the hearing will be limited to
those raised in the respective case briefs. An electronically filed
hearing request must be received successfully in its entirety by
Commerce's electronic records system, ACCESS, by 5 p.m. Eastern Time
within 30 days after the date of publication of this notice.
Unless the deadline is extended, we intend to issue the final
results of this administrative review, which will include the results
of our analysis of the 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 and 19 CFR
351.213(h).
Verification
As provided in section 782(i)(3) of the Act, Commerce intends to
verify the information relied upon for its final results.
Assessment Rate
In accordance with 19 CFR 351.221(b)(4)(i), we preliminarily
assigned a subsidy rate in the amount shown above for the producer/
exporter shown above. Upon completion of the administrative review,
consistent with section 751(a)(1) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.212(b)(2),
Commerce shall determine, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP)
shall assess, countervailing duties on all appropriate entries covered
by this review.
[[Page 35796]]
For the company for which this review is rescinded, we 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 January 1, 2022, through December 31,
2022, in accordance with 19 CFR 351.212(c)(l)(i). We intend to issue
assessment instructions to CBP no earlier than 35 days after the date
of publication of this notice in the Federal Register.
For the company remaining in the review, we intend 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).
Cash Deposit Requirements
In accordance with section 751(a)(1) of the Act, Commerce intends,
upon publication of the final results, to instruct CBP to collect cash
deposits of estimated countervailing duties in the amount shown for the
company (and its cross-owned affiliates) listed above on shipments of
subject merchandise entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for
consumption on or after the date of publication of the final results of
this administrative review. For all non-reviewed firms, we will
instruct CBP to continue to collect cash deposits at the most recent
company-specific or all others rate applicable to the company. These
cash deposit requirements, when imposed, shall remain in effect until
further notice.
Notification to Interested Parties
These preliminary results and partial rescission of review are
issued and published pursuant to sections 751(a)(1) and 777(i)(1) of
the Act, 19 CFR 351.213(d)(1), and 19 CFR 351.221(b)(4).
Dated: April 26, 2024.
Ryan Majerus,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy and Negotiations, performing the
non-exclusive functions and duties of the Assistant Secretary for
Enforcement and Compliance.
Appendix
List of Topics Discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum
I. Summary
II. Background
III. Partial Rescission of Review
IV. Scope of the Order
V. Subsidies Valuation Information
VI. Interest Rate Benchmarks and Benchmarks for Measuring the
Adequacy of Remuneration
VII. Use of Facts Otherwise Available and Application of Adverse
Inferences
VIII. Analysis of Programs
IX. Recommendation
[FR Doc. 2024-09585 Filed 5-1-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P