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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 219 (Wednesday, November 13, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 89610-89612]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-26251]

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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[C-580-884]

Certain Hot-Rolled Steel Flat Products From the Republic of 
Korea: Preliminary Results and Partial Rescission of 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 were provided to producers 
and exporters of certain hot-rolled steel flat products (hot-rolled 
steel) from the Republic of Korea (Korea). The period of review (POR) 
is January 1, 2022, through December 31, 2022. Additionally, Commerce 
is rescinding the review, in part, with respect to 13 companies which 
had no entries. We invite interested parties to comment on these 
preliminary results.

DATES: Applicable November 13, 2024.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kelsie Hohenberger or Nathan James, 
AD/CVD Operations, Office V, Enforcement and Compliance, International 
Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution 
Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-2517 or (202) 
482-5305, respectively.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    In October 2023, Commerce received requests for an administrative 
review of the countervailing duty (CVD) order on hot-rolled steel from 
Korea.\1\ On December 6, 2023, Commerce published a notice of 
initiation of administrative review of the Order.\2\ On January 18, 
2024, Commerce selected Hyundai Steel Company (Hyundai Steel) and POSCO 
as mandatory respondents in this administrative review.\3\ On June 25, 
2024, Commerce extended the deadline for the preliminary results of 
this

[[Page 89611]]

review.\4\ On July 22, 2024, Commerce tolled certain deadlines in this 
administrative proceeding by seven days.\5\ The deadline for the 
preliminary results is now November 6, 2024.
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    \1\ See Certain Hot-Rolled Steel Flat Products from Brazil and 
the Republic of Korea: Amended Final Affirmative Countervailing Duty 
Determinations and Countervailing Duty Orders, 81 FR 67960 (October 
3, 2016) (Order).
    \2\ See Initiation of Antidumping and Countervailing Duty 
Administrative Reviews, 88 FR 84784 (December 6, 2023) (Initiation 
Notice).
    \3\ See Memorandum, ``Respondent Selection,'' dated January 18, 
2024.
    \4\ See Memorandum, ``Extension of Deadline for Preliminary 
Results of 2022 Countervailing Duty Administrative Review,'' dated 
June 25, 2024.
    \5\ See Memorandum, ``Tolling of Deadlines for Antidumping and 
Countervailing Duty Proceedings,'' dated July 22, 2024.
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    For a complete description of the events that followed the 
initiation of this review, see the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.\6\ 
A list of topics discussed 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 http://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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    \6\ See Memorandum, ``Decision Memorandum for the Preliminary 
Results of the Countervailing Duty Administrative Review; 2022: 
Certain Hot-Rolled Steel Flat Products from the Republic of Korea,'' 
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 hot-rolled steel from 
Korea. For a complete description of the scope of the Order, see the 
Preliminary Decision Memorandum.

Rescission of Administrative Review, In Part

    On October 8, 2024, Commerce notified interested parties that we 
intended to rescind this administrative review for 13 companies for 
which the record information shows no suspended entries of subject 
merchandise during the POR.\7\ No parties commented on the notification 
of intent to rescind the review, in part. Therefore, we find that there 
were no entries of subject merchandise during the POR by the 13 
companies listed in Appendix II. As a result of our finding, we are 
rescinding this review, in part, pursuant to 19 CFR 351.213(d)(3), with 
respect to these companies. For further information regarding this 
determination, see ``Rescission of Administrative Review, in Part'' 
section in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.
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    \7\ See Memorandum, ``Intent to Rescind Review, in Part,'' dated 
October 8, 2024.
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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 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.\8\ For a full description of the 
methodology underlying our conclusions, see the Preliminary Decision 
Memorandum.
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    \8\ 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 net 
countervailable subsidy rates for the period January 1, 2022, through 
December 31, 2022 to be:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                           Subsidy rate
                         Company                            (percent ad
                                                             valorem)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hyundai Steel Company \9\...............................            2.21
POSCO \10\..............................................            1.47
------------------------------------------------------------------------

Disclosure and Public Comment
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    \9\ As discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum, 
Commerce has found the following company to be cross-owned with 
Hyundai Steel: Hyundai Green Power Co., Ltd.
    \10\ The company is also known as POSCO Co., Ltd. Additionally, 
as discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum, Commerce has 
found the following companies to be cross-owned with POSCO: POSCO 
Holdings, POSCO International Corporation, POSCO Chemical, POSCO M-
Tech, Pohang Scrap Recycling Distribution Center Co., Ltd., POSCO 
Nippon Steel RHF Joint Venture Co., Ltd., and POSCO Mobility 
Solutions.
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    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).
    Interested parties may submit case briefs or other written comments 
to the Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.\11\ A 
timeline for the submission of case briefs and written comments will be 
established at a later date. Rebuttal briefs, limited to issues raised 
in case briefs, may be submitted no later than five days after the 
deadline date for case briefs.\12\ Interested parties that submit case 
or rebuttal briefs in this review must submit: (1) a table of contents 
listing each issue; and (2) a table of authorities.\13\
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    \11\ See 19 CFR 351.309(c)(1)(ii); see also 19 CFR 351.303 for 
general filing requirements.
    \12\ 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).
    \13\ See 19 CFR 351.309(c)(2) and (d)(2).
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    As provided under 19 CFR 351.310(c)(2) and (d)(2), in prior 
proceedings we have encouraged interested parties to provide an 
executive summary of their briefs 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.\14\ 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).\15\
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    \14\ We use the term ``issue'' here to describe an argument that 
Commerce would normally address in a comment of the Issues and 
Decision Memorandum.
    \15\ 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 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; and (3) a list of the issues to 
be discussed. Issues raised in the hearing will be limited to those 
raised in the respective case briefs. If a request for a hearing is 
made, Commerce will inform parties of the scheduled date for the 
hearing
    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).

Assessment Rates

    Consistent with section 751(a)(1) of the Act and 19 CFR 
351.212(b)(2), upon

[[Page 89612]]

issuance of the final results, Commerce shall determine, and CBP shall 
assess, countervailing duties on all appropriate entries covered by 
this review.
    For the companies 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. We intend to issue assessment instructions to CBP for these 
companies no earlier than 35 days after the date of publication of this 
rescission in the Federal Register.
    For the companies remaining in the review, we will instruct CBP to 
assess countervailing duties on all appropriate entries at the subsidy 
rates calculated in the final results of this 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 amounts shown for 
each of the respective companies 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 review. For 
all non-reviewed firms, we will instruct CBP to continue to collect 
cash deposits of estimated countervailing duties at the most recent 
company-specific or all-others rate applicable to the company. These 
cash deposit instructions, when imposed, shall remain in effect until 
further notice.

Notification to Interested Parties

    We are issuing and publishing these preliminary results of review 
in accordance with sections 751(a)(1) and 777(i)(1) of the Act, and 19 
CFR 351.221(b)(4).

    Dated: November 6, 2024.
Abdelali Elouaradia,
Deputy 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. Period of Review
V. Diversification of Korea's Economy
VI. Rescission of Administrative Review, in Part
VII. Subsidies Valuation Information
VIII. Benchmarks and Interest Rates
IX. Analysis of Programs
X. Recommendation

Appendix II

Companies for Which Commerce Is Rescinding This Review

1. DCE Inc.
2. Dong Chuel America Inc.
3. Dong Chuel Industrial Co., Ltd.
4. Dongbu Incheon Steel Co., Ltd.
5. Dongbu Steel Co., Ltd.
6. Dongkuk Industries Co., Ltd.
7. Dongkuk Steel Mill Co., Ltd.
8. Hyewon Sni Corporation (H.S.I.)
9. JFE Shoji Trade Korea Ltd.
10. POSCO Coated & Color Steel Co., Ltd.
11. POSCO Daewoo Corporation
12. Soon Hong Trading Co., Ltd.
13. Sung-A Steel Co., Ltd.

[FR Doc. 2024-26251 Filed 11-12-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P
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