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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 240 (Friday, December 13, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 100969-100971]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-29325]

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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[C-580-913]

Oil Country Tubular Goods From the Republic of Korea: Preliminary 
Results and Rescission, In Part, 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 not provided to SeAH 
Steel Corporation and its cross-owned affiliate, SeAH Steel Holdings 
Corporation (collectively, the SeAH Steel Companies), a producer and 
exporter of oil country tubular goods (OCTG) from the Republic of Korea 
(Korea). The period of review (POR) is September 29, 2022, through 
December 31, 2022. Additionally, Commerce is rescinding this review, in 
part, with respect to four companies. Interested parties are invited to 
comment on these preliminary results.

DATES: Applicable December 13, 2024.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rebecca Janz, AD/CVD Operations, 
Office II, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade 
Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue 
NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-2972.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    On December 29, 2023, based on timely requests for review and in 
accordance with 19 CFR 351.221(c)(1)(i), Commerce published a notice of 
initiation of an administrative review of the Order with respect to 
five companies.\1\ On July 17, 2024, Commerce extended the time period 
for issuing these preliminary results by 120 days, in accordance with 
section 751(a)(3)(A) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the 
Act).\2\ On July 22, 2024, Commerce tolled certain deadlines in this 
administrative review by seven days.\3\ The deadline for these 
preliminary results is now December 6, 2024.
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    \1\ See Initiation of Antidumping and Countervailing Duty 
Administrative Reviews, 88 FR 90168 (December 29, 2023) (Initiation 
Notice); see also Oil Country Tubular Goods from the Republic of 
Korea and the Russian Federation: Countervailing Duty Orders, 87 FR 
70782 (November 21, 2022) (Order). We initiated the current review 
with respect to four companies and a deferred review of one company. 
See Initiation Notice, 88 FR at 90172, 90173 and n.5.
    \2\ See Memorandum, ``Extension of Deadline for Preliminary 
Results of Countervailing Duty Administrative Review,'' dated July 
17, 2024.
    \3\ 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.\4\ 
A list of topics discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum is 
included as an appendix 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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    \4\ See Memorandum, ``Decision Memorandum for the Preliminary 
Results of the Administrative Review of the Countervailing Duty 
Order on Oil Country Tubular Goods from the Republic of Korea; 
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 OCTG from Korea. For a 
complete description of the scope of the Order, see the Preliminary 
Decision Memorandum.

Rescission of Administrative Review, In Part

    In accordance with 19 CFR 351.213(d)(1), Commerce will rescind an 
administrative review, in whole or in part, if all parties that 
requested the review withdraw their requests within 90 days of the date 
of publication of the notice of initiation of the requested review. 
Commerce received timely-filed withdrawal requests with respect to AJU 
Besteel Co., Ltd. (AJU Besteel); Husteel Co., Ltd. (Husteel); ILJIN 
Steel Corporation (ILJIN); and NEXTEEL Co., Ltd. (NEXTEEL), pursuant to 
19 CFR 351.213(d)(1). Because the withdrawal requests were timely 
filed, and no other parties requested a review of these companies, in 
accordance with 19 CFR 351.213(d)(1), Commerce is rescinding this 
review of the Order with respect to these four companies.

Methodology

    Commerce is conducting this administrative review in accordance 
with section 751(a)(1)(A) of the Act. For each of the subsidy programs 
found countervailable, Commerce preliminarily determines that there is 
a

[[Page 100970]]

subsidy, i.e., a financial contribution by an ``authority'' that gives 
rise to a benefit to the recipient, and the subsidy is specific.\5\ For 
a full description of the methodology underlying our conclusions, see 
the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.
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    \5\ 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 exists for the POR, 
September 29, 2022, through December 31, 2022:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                Subsidy rate (percent ad
               Producer/exporter                        valorem)
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SeAH Steel Corporation; SeAH Steel Holding                        0.14
 Corporation \6\..............................
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* De minimis.

Disclosure
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    \6\ As discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum, 
Commerce has found SeAH Steel Holding Corporation to be cross-owned 
with SeAH Steel Corporation.
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    Commerce intends to disclose its calculations performed to 
interested parties for these preliminary results within five days of 
the date of any public announcement or, if there is no public 
announcement, within five days of the date of publication of this 
notice in accordance with 19 CFR 351.224(b).

Public Comment

    Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.309(c)(1)(ii), interested parties may submit 
case briefs to Commerce no later than 30 days after the date of 
publication of this notice. 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.\7\ Interested parties who submit case or 
rebuttal briefs in this proceeding must submit: (1) a table of contents 
listing each issue; and (2) a table of authorities.\8\ All briefs must 
be filed electronically using ACCESS. An electronically filed document 
must be received successfully in its entirety in ACCESS by 5:00 p.m. 
Eastern Time (ET) on the established deadline.
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    \7\ See 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).
    \8\ 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 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.\9\ 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).\10\
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    \9\ We use the term ``issue'' here to describe an argument that 
Commerce would normally address in a comment of the Issues and 
Decision Memorandum.
    \10\ 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 by 5:00 p.m. ET 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 whether any 
participant is a foreign national; (3) 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 will 
inform parties of the scheduled date for the hearing.\11\
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    \11\ See 19 CFR 351.310(d).
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Assessment Rates

    Consistent with section 751(a)(2)(C) of the Act, upon issuance of 
the final results, Commerce shall determine, and U.S. Customs and 
Border Protection (CBP) shall assess, countervailing duties on all 
appropriate entries covered by this review.
    For the companies listed above for which this review is rescinded, 
Commerce 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 September 29, 2022, 
through December 31, 2022, in accordance with 19 CFR 351.212(c)(l)(i). 
Commerce intends to issue rescission instructions to CBP for these 
companies no earlier than 35 days after the date of publication of the 
notice of rescission in the Federal Register.
    Commerce intends to issue assessment instructions to CBP regarding 
the SeAH Steel Companies 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

    Pursuant to section 751(a)(2)(C) of the Act, Commerce intends to 
instruct CBP to collect cash deposits of estimated countervailing 
duties in the amount indicated above with regard to 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. If the rate calculated in the final results 
is zero or de minimis, no cash deposit will be required on shipments of 
the subject merchandise entered or withdrawn from warehouse, for 
consumption on or after the date of publication of this review. These 
cash deposit instructions, when imposed, shall remain in effect until 
further notice.

Final Results of Review

    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 their written briefs, 
no later than 120 days after publication of these preliminary results.

[[Page 100971]]

Notification to Interested Parties

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

    Dated: December 6, 2024.
Abdelali Elouaradia,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.

Appendix--List of Topics Discussed in the Preliminary Decision 
Memorandum

I. Summary
II. Background
III. Period of Review
IV. Scope of the Order
V. Diversification of Korea's Economy
VI. Subsidies Valuation Information
VII. Benchmarks and Interest Rates
VIII. Analysis of Programs
IX. Recommendation

[FR Doc. 2024-29325 Filed 12-12-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P
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