57674 Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 186 / Monday, September 27, 2004 / Notices 

on or about February 28, 2005 in 

accordance with sections 751(c)(5)(B) 

and 751(c)(5)(C)(ii) of the Act.

Dated: September 20, 2004.

Jeffrey A. May,

Acting Assistant Secretary for Import 

Administration.

[FR Doc. E4–2390 Filed 9–24–04; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–DS–P

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration 

[A–449–804] 

Steel Concrete Reinforcing Bars From 

Latvia: Extension of the Time Limit for 

the Final Results of Antidumping Duty 

Administrative Review

AGENCY: Import Administration, 

International Trade Administration, 

Department of Commerce.

EFFECTIVE DATE: September 27, 2004.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Daniel O’Brien or Constance Handley at 

(202) 482–1376 or (202) 482–0631, 

respectively; Office 1 AD/CVD 

Enforcement, Import Administration, 

International Trade Administration, 

U.S. Department of Commerce, 14th 

Street and Constitution Avenue, NW., 

Washington, DC 20230. 

Time Limits 

Statutory Time Limits 

Section 751(a)(3)(A) of the Tariff Act 

of 1930, as amended (the Act), requires 

the Department to complete the 

preliminary results of an administrative 

review within 245 days after the last day 

of the anniversary month of an order for 

which a review is requested and the 

final results within 120 days after the 

date on which the preliminary results 

are published. However, if it is not 

practicable to complete the review 

within these time periods, section 

751(a)(3)(A) of the Act allows the 

Department to extend the time limit for 

the preliminary results to a maximum of 

365 days and for the final results to 180 

days from the date of publication of the 

preliminary results (or 300 days if the 

Department does not extend the time 

limit for the preliminary results). 

Background 

On September 17, 2003, Liepajas 

Metalurgs requested an administrative 

review. On September 30, 2003, the 

petitioners requested an administrative 

review of Liepajas Metalurgs. On 

October 24, 2003, the Department 

published the notice of initiation of this 

antidumping duty administrative 

review, covering the period September 

1, 2002, through August 31, 2003 (the 

POR). See Initiation of Antidumping 

and Countervailing Duty Administrative 

Reviews, 68 FR 60910 (October 24, 

2003). On June 10, 2004, the Department 

published the preliminary results of this 

antidumping duty administrative 

review. See Notice of Preliminary 

Results of Antidumping Duty 

Administrative Review, 69 FR 32508 

(June 10, 2004). 

Extension of Time Limit for Final 

Results of Review 

We determine that it is not practicable 

to complete the final results of this 

review within the original time limit for 

the reasons stated in our memorandum 

from Susan Kuhbach, Director, Office 1, 

to Jeffrey May, Deputy Assistant 

Secretary, which is on file in the Central 

Records Unit, Room B–099 of the main 

Commerce building. Therefore, the 

Department is extending the time limit 

for completion of the final results by 60 

days until no later than December 7, 

2004. 

This extension is in accordance with 

section 751(a)(3)(A) of the Act.

Dated: September 21, 2004. 

Jeffrey A. May, 

Deputy Assistant Secretary for Import 

Administration.

[FR Doc. E4–2391 Filed 9–24–04; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–DR–S

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration 

Oil and Gas Equipment and Services 

Trade Mission

AGENCY: International Trade 

Administration, Department of 

Commerce.

ACTION: Notice to announce Oil and Gas 

Equipment and Services Trade Mission 

to Malaysia, Singapore, and Vietnam, 

December 6–14, 2004. 

SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of 

Commerce, International Trade 

Administration, U.S. Commercial 

Service, Office of Global Trade 

Programs, is organizing an Oil and Gas 

Equipment and Services Trade Mission 

to Malaysia, Singapore, and Vietnam, 

December 6–14, 2004. This event offers 

a timely opportunity for U.S. firms to 

tap into some of the world’s fastest 

growing marketplaces for oil and gas 

equipment and services. The mission 

will target companies in all sectors of 

the oil and gas industry, with particular 

focus on pipeline and tubular goods, 

drilling machinery and equipment, 

surveying technology, and safety 

equipment.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Office of Global Trade Programs; Room 

2012; Department of Commerce; 

Washington, DC 20230; tel: (202) 482–

4457; Fax: (202) 482–0178.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Oil and Gas Equipment and Services Trade 

Mission 

Malaysia, Singapore, and Vietnam, 

December 6–14, 2004.

Mission Statement 

I. Description of the Mission 

The U.S. Department of Commerce, 

International Trade Administration, 

U.S. Commercial Service, Office of 

Global Trade Programs, is organizing an 

Oil and Gas Equipment and Services 

Trade Mission to Malaysia, Singapore, 

and Vietnam, December 6–14, 2004. 

This event offers a timely opportunity 

for U.S. firms to tap into some of the 

world’s fastest growing marketplaces for 

oil and gas equipment and services. The 

mission will target companies in all 

sectors of the oil, and gas industry, with 

particular focus on pipeline and tubular 

goods, drilling machinery and 

equipment, surveying technology, and 

safety equipment. In addition to 

receiving a personalized schedule of 

one-on-one appointments with qualified 

agents, distributors, representatives, 

licensees, and joint venture partners, 

mission delegates will visit Offshore 

South East Asia 2004 (OSEA 2004), the 

leading oil and gas trade show in Asia, 

and a U.S. Department of Commerce 

Certified Trade Fair. OSEA 2004, to be 

held in Singapore, will offer mission 

participants an extra venue to network 

and learn about business opportunities 

in South East Asia.

II. Commercial Setting for the Mission 

Projections made by the International 

Energy Agency in its World Energy 

Outlook 2002 indicate that more than 

60% of the increase in world primary 

energy demand between 2000 and 2030 

will come from developing countries, 

especially in Asia. Critical to satisfying 

this demand is a move to develop South 

East Asia’s massive gas resources; large 

reserves have been found in Indonesia 

(158 trillion cubic feet) and also in the 

Malaysian/Thailand Joint Development 

Zone (7.6 trillion cubic feet). Producing 

and exporting these reserves, 

particularly as LNG to South Korea, 

Japan and China, represents a huge 

export revenue generator. The World 

Offshore Drilling Report by analysts 

Douglas Westwood projected that some 

US $18.26 billion was to have been

Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 186 / Monday, September 27, 2004 / Notices 57675

spent on offshore drilling in Asia in 

2003, with the total investment between 

2002 and 2007 set at US $38.62 billion. 

Malaysia: Prospects for Malaysia’s oil 

and gas industry are still bright and the 

sector should experience healthy growth 

rates. During the past five years, 

approximately US $6.6 billion has been 

spent on exploration and production. 

About fifty percent of Malaysia’s crude 

reserves remain undeveloped. A total of 

about US $16.2 billion will be invested 

by the petroleum industry during the 

Eighth Malaysia Plan period (2001–

2005), as stated in the Government of 

Malaysia’s five-year plan. Of this, US 

$10.9 billion (67.5%) will be spent for 

exploration, development and 

production activities by Petronas 

(National Petroleum Corporation) and 

its production-sharing contractors. 

Malaysis has a broad, shallow 

continental shelf (330,000 sq. km) and 

some deepwater prospective areas. In 

total, Malaysia has approximately 

500,000 square kilometers available for 

oil and gas exploration, of which 

205,000 square kilometers are currently 

covered by Production Sharing 

Contracts (PSC). The country’s deeper 

offshore areas, with water depths of 200 

meters or more, have only more recently 

been opened to oil and gas exploration. 

There are now 70 producing fields in 

Malaysia, 51 of which are oil fields. As 

of January 1, 2004, oil and gas reserves 

were estimated to be 4.84 billion barrels 

of crude oil and 87.0 trillion standard 

cubic feet (tscf) of natural gas. At 

current rates of production, oil reserves 

in Malaysia are expected to last 18 years 

and gas reserves, 34 years. Malaysia’s 

current production of crude oil and 

condensates is about 750,000 barrels per 

day and about 2.20 tscf per year 

respectively. 

Four new PSCs were concluded 

during the last 15 months, bringing the 

number of PSCs in operation in 

Malaysia to 49, the highest level so far. 

Petronas has estimated that the PSC 

contractors invested US $2.88 billion 

during the April 2003–March 2004 

period, with most of the investments 

channeled into development projects. 

Efforts to search for oil and gas have 

recently extended to some of the more 

unconventional areas, such as the 

deepwater acreage, where very limited 

exploration activities were carried out 

in the past due to technological 

constraints and high investment costs. 

Petronas recently introduced the 

Deepwater Production Sharing Contract 

(PSC) that provides added incentives to 

production sharing contractors to 

undertake exploration activities in the 

prospective deepwater areas. Since the 

1993 signing of its first deepwater PSC 

with Mobil, Petronas has awarded 13 

blocks under the Deepwater PSC terms 

to 11 multinational companies. The 

latest: two deepwater blocks were 

awarded to Murphy Oil in January 2003, 

and one deepwater block to Newfield 

Exploration Company (U.S.).

The Malaysian market for oil and gas 

equipment in 2003 was estimated at 

US$575 million. Malaysia’s oil and gas 

equipment is supplied mostly through 

imports because local production is very 

small. It is expected that equipment 

needs will continue to be supplied 

through imports for the next several 

years. Malaysia uses primarily 

American made oil and gas equipment 

and tools, with at least 60% of the 

imports coming directly from the United 

States. 

Singapore: Singapore is the world’s 

third largest oil refining and trading 

center, and has long been a global hub 

for oil refining and a cost-competitive 

location for highly integrated, worldscale petrochemical plants. Jurong 

Island, created in the 1990s by merging 

some seven smaller islands, houses 

some of the world’s biggest names in the 

petroleum and petrochemicals 

industries. Companies like ExxonMobil, 

Shell, Chevron Texaco, BASF, 

Sumitomo Chemical and Mitsui 

Chemical are based on Juorng Island. 

Singapore also plays a dominant role in 

the specialty chemicals industry, in the 

area of lube and fuel additives, 

consumer care specialities, electronic 

chemicals and materials, polymer 

additives, and coatings and inks. The 

chemical industry grew strongly in 2002 

despite difficult conditions. Output 

grew by 7 percent to S$31.2 billion 

(Singaporean Dollars) and value-added 

grew 22 percent to S$4.9 billion. The 

petroleum sector accounted for slightly 

more than half, or S$17.6 billion, of the 

total output, with petrochemicals 

generating S$8.5 billion. Singapore also 

offers 12 research institutes and three 

universities which offer opportunities 

for R&D collaborations. 

Amid Asia’s strengthening economy 

and the implementation of the USSingapore Free Trade Agreement, which 

further enhances Singapore’s reputation 

as the gateway to South East Asia, U.S. 

companies on the mission can leverage 

their presence at Offshore South East 

Asia (OSEA) 2004, the region’s premier 

oil and gas trade show, to tap the vast 

opportunities in the region. 

Vietnam: Vietnam has so far 

discovered over 50 oil and gas fields 

with total estimated reserves of about 

1.15 billion tons of proven crude oil 

equivalent, which include 540 million 

tons of oil and 640 billion cubic meters 

(cbms) of natural gas. The production of 

crude oil and gas in 2003 reached 17.16 

million tons and 3.7 billion cbms 

respectively. It is estimated that 

Vietnam will produce about 16–18 

million tons of crude oil from local 

operation, 3 million tons from foreign 

operation and 11–13 billion cmbs of gas 

by 1020. 

The industry is expected to achieve 

the growth rate of 10–15 percent per 

year over the coming years. The total 

investment required to realize such a 

rapid growth is about US$19–20 billion 

by 2010, of which over US$10 billion 

may be funded by local sources and the 

remaining US$10 billion by foreign 

investors. According to Petro Vietnam, a 

state-owned monopoly in the sector, oil 

and gas exploration and exploitation 

will be increased in the coming years to 

raise the country’s total discovered oil 

and gas reserves to 1.5–1.6 billion tons 

of crude oil equivalent by 2010.

In particular, upstream and midstream operation will need about 

US$900 million to 1.1 billion in new 

investment per year for exploration and 

production activities as well as the 

construction of two refinery facilities, in 

Dung Quat and Nghi Son, and possibly 

a third refinery in the South. 

American technologies, expertise and 

experience are highly respected in the 

oil and gas industry in Vietnam. This 

presents significant opportunities for 

U.S. firms to export/transfer equipment, 

Indonesia: The market for oil and gas 

equipment in Indonesia remains 

attractive and has a promising outlook 

for the long term. In 2003, the 

government awarded 15 new oil and gas 

concessions, receiving a total of $343.82 

million in investment commitments. 

This was a significant improvement 

over 2001 and 2002 and when the 

government awarded only six contracts 

and one contract respectively. 

In 2002, the total investment (for 

exploration, production, and 

administration) reached $3.4 billion, 

down 13 percent from 2001. In 2003 

(preliminary figures), investment from 

production-sharing contractors (PSCs) 

reached $3.97 billion, including $1.13 

billion for exploration, $2.5 billion for 

production and $329,000 for 

administration. The government expects 

to award another 17 new oil and gas 

contracts this year with a target of 50 

new contracts over the next five years. 

Total investment in 2004 is predicted 

to reach $7 billion, which in turn is 

expected to create significant market 

opportunities for U.S. oil and gas 

equipment and services. industry 

sources estimate that the market will 

increase by 20% in 2004, with U.S. 

market share increasing by 10%, given 

57676 Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 186 / Monday, September 27, 2004 / Notices 

planned exploration and development 

of existing oil fields. 

III. Scenario for the Mission 

Timetable 

Sunday, December 5—Arrive in Kuala 

Lumpur, Malaysia 

Monday, December 6—Market Briefing 

and Trade Mission Meetings 

Tuesday, December 7—Trade Mission 

Meetings 

Wednesday, December 8—Arrive in 

Singapore Market Briefing and 

Meetings at OSEA 2004

Thursday, December 9—Trade Mission 

Meetings at OSEA 2004

Friday, December 10—Trade Mission 

Meetings at OSEA 2004

Saturday, December 11—Free 

Sunday, December 12—Arrive Hanoi, 

Vietnam 

Monday, December 13—Market Briefing 

and Trade Mission Meetings 

Tuesday, December 14—Trade Mission 

Meetings Conclusion of Trade 

Mission

V. Criteria for Participant Selection 

• Relevance of the company’s 

business line to mission goals; 

• Potential for business in the 

selected markets; 

• Timeless of the company’s 

completed application and payment of 

the mission participation fee; 

• Provision of adequate information 

on the company’s products and/or 

services and communication of the 

company’s primary objectives to 

facilitate appropriate matching with 

potential business partners; 

• Certification that the company 

meets Departmental guidelines for 

participation, including certification 

that the company’s products and/or 

services are manufactured or produced 

in the United States or if manufactured/

produced and/or services are 

manufactured or produced in the United 

States or if manufactured/produced 

outside of the United States, the 

product/service must be marketed under 

the name of the U.S. firm and have U.S. 

content of at least fifty-one percent of 

the value of the finished good or service. 

The mission will be promoted 

through the following venues: U.S. 

Export Assistance Centers and Teams; 

the Federal Register; relevant trade 

publications; relevant trade 

associations; post Commerce trade 

mission participants; various in-house 

and purchased industry lists; and the 

Commerce Department trade missions 

calendar—http://www.ita.doc.gov/

doctm/tmcal.html—and other Internet 

Web sites. 

Any partisan political activities of an 

applicant, including political 

contributions, will be entirely irrelevant 

to the selection process. The 

participation fee will be $3,500 for the 

trade mission. Participation fees do not 

include the cost of travel and lodging. 

Participation is open to the first 10 

qualified U.S. companies. Recruitment 

will begin immediately and will close 

on Friday, October 29, 2004. 

Applications received after that date 

will be considered only if space and 

scheduling constraints permit. 

Contact Information: Matthew H. 

Wright, International Trade Specialist, 

Global Trade Programs, U.S. Department 

of Commerce, Room 2012, Washington, 

DC 20230, tel: 202–482–2567/fax: 202–

482–0178, e-mail: 

Matthew.Wright@mail.doc.gov.

Dated: August 26, 2004. 

Donald Businger, 

Director, Office of Trade Event Programs.

[FR Doc. 04–21606 Filed 9–24–04; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–DR–M

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration

[I.D. 092104D]

Magnuson-Stevens Act Provisions; 

General Provisions for Domestic 

Fisheries; Application for Exempted 

Fishing Permits

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Department of Commerce.

ACTION: Notification of a proposal for 

EFPs to conduct experimental fishing; 

request for comments.

SUMMARY: The Assistant Regional 

Administrator for Sustainable Fisheries, 

Northeast Region, NMFS (Assistant 

Regional Administrator) has made a 

preliminary determination that the 

subject Exempted Fishing Permit (EFP) 

application contains all the required 

information and warrants further 

consideration. The Assistant Regional 

Administrator has also made a 

preliminary determination that the 

activities authorized under the EFP 

would be consistent with the goals and 

objectives of the Northeast (NE) 

Multispecies Fishery Management Plan 

(FMP). However, further review and 

consultation may be necessary before a 

final determination is made to issue the 

EFP. Therefore, NMFS announces that 

the Assistant Regional Administrator 

proposes to recommend that an EFP be 

issued that would allow commercial 

fishing vessels to conduct fishing 

operations that are otherwise restricted 

by the regulations governing the 

fisheries of the Northeastern United 

States. The EFP would allow for an 

exemption from the FMP as follows: 

Groundfish Closed Area I. Regulations 

under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act 

require publication of this notification 

to provide interested parties the 

opportunity to comment on applications 

for proposed EFPs.

DATES: Comments on this document 

must be received on or before October 

12, 2004.

ADDRESSES: Comments on this notice 

may be submitted by e-mail. The 

mailbox address for providing e-mail 

comments is DA640@noaa.gov. Include 

in the subject line of the e-mail 

comment the following document 

identifier: ‘‘Comments on URI Bycatch 

Reduction Study.’’ Written comments 

should be sent to Patricia A. Kurkul, 

Regional Administrator, NMFS, 

Northeast Regional Office, 1 Blackburn 

Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930. Mark the 

outside of the envelope ‘‘Comments on 

URI Bycatch Reduction Study.’’

Comments may also be sent via 

facsimile (fax) to (978) 281–9135.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Brian Hooker, Fishery Policy Analyst, 

phone 978–281–9220.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

University of Rhode Island, Department 

of Fisheries, Animal and Veterinary 

Science (URI) submitted an initial 

application for an EFP on July 19, 2004. 

The experimental fishing application 

requests authorization for activities to 

conduct a bycatch reduction study of 

cod in the haddock bottom trawl 

fishery. The purpose of the study is to 

determine if the experimental trawl gear 

would achieve a reduction in cod 

bycatch significant enough to warrant 

consideration as a Special Access 

Program (SAP) under provisions in 

Amendment 13 to the FMP.

The proposed research would utilize 

three commercial fishing vessels to 

conduct a bycatch reduction study in 

the directed haddock bottom trawl 

fishery from November 2004 through 

November 2005, using side-by-side tows 

to compare the control net with one 

experimental large-mesh net. The 

control net would be a standard net 

with a 6–inch (15.24–cm) mesh body, 

and 8–inch (20.32–cm) mesh wings and 

jibs. The experimental net would utilize 

a graduated netting starting with 8–ft 

(2.44–m) mesh and ending in the 

standard 6–inch (15.24–cm) mesh. The 

mesh size in both nets is equal to or 

greater than the required minimum 

mesh size. The experiment would