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[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 2 (Friday, January 3, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 302-303]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-31591]

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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-580-914]

Certain Superabsorbent Polymers From the Republic of Korea: 
Notice of Court Decision Not in Harmony With the Final Determination of 
Antidumping Duty Investigation; Notice of Amended Final Determination; 
Notice of Amended Antidumping Duty Order

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

SUMMARY: On December 17, 2024, the U.S. Court of International Trade 
(CIT) issued its final judgment in Ad Hoc Coalition of American SAP 
Producers v. United States, Court No. 23-00010, sustaining the U.S. 
Department of Commerce's (Commerce) final remand redetermination 
pertaining to the less-than-fair-value (LTFV) investigation of certain 
superabsorbent polymers (SAP) from the Republic of Korea (Korea) 
covering the period of investigation October 1, 2020, through September 
30, 2021. Commerce is notifying the public that the CIT's final 
judgment is not in harmony with Commerce's final determination in that 
investigation, and that Commerce is amending the final determination 
and the resulting antidumping duty (AD) order with respect to the 
dumping margins assigned to LG Chem, Ltd. (LGC) and all other producers 
and exporters of subject merchandise.

DATES: Applicable December 27, 2024.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Charles DeFilippo, AD/CVD Operations, 
Office VII, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade 
Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue 
NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-3797.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    On October 27, 2022, Commerce published its Final Determination in 
the LTFV investigation of SAP from Korea.\1\ In its Final 
Determination, Commerce revised the model match hierarchy of the 
physical characteristics of the subject merchandise to use LGC's 
proposed centrifugal retention capacity (CRC) characteristic reporting 
of 4 g/g increments, and to include LGC's proposed two additional 
characteristics (absorbency under pressure (AUP) and permeability 
(PERM)) based on its finding that the alternative CRC increments and 
inclusion of AUP and PERM were commercially significant.\2\ Commerce 
subsequently published the AD order on SAP from Korea.\3\
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    \1\ See Certain Superabsorbent Polymers From the Republic of 
Korea: Final Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value, 87 FR 
65035 (October 27, 2022) (Final Determination), and accompanying 
Issues and Decision Memorandum (IDM).
    \2\ See Final Determination IDM at 3-14.
    \3\ See Certain Superabsorbent Polymers from the Republic of 
Korea: Antidumping Duty Order, 87 FR 77794 (December 20, 2022).
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    The Ad Hoc Coalition of American SAP Producers (Coalition) appealed 
Commerce's Final Determination. On March 1, 2024, the CIT remanded the 
Final Determination to Commerce to: (1) reconsider or further explain 
the commercial significance of the characteristics adopted into 
Commerce's model match hierarchy when compared to those adopted in the 
preliminary determination, in particular narrower 4 g/g ranges for CRC, 
as well as AUP and PERM, which the CIT held to be unsupported by 
substantial evidence in the final determination; (2) further explain 
whether and to what extent Commerce verified the alternative sales and 
cost information upon which it relied in the final determination; and 
(3) address the Coalition's concern that LGC's defined characteristics 
created a possibility of manipulation, which could result in a 
distorted dumping margin.\4\
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    \4\ See Ad Hoc Coalition of American SAP Producers v. United 
States, Court No. 23-00010, Slip Op. 24-26 (CIT March 1, 2024).
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    In its final remand redetermination, issued in June 2024, Commerce 
determined that there is no additional information on the record that 
would support the finding that narrower 4 g/g ranges for CRC and the 
inclusion of AUP and PERM are commercially significant and should be 
included in the model match hierarchy.\5\ As a result, Commerce revised 
the model match

[[Page 303]]

hierarchy to only include CRC in 6 g/g increments. Further, because 
Commerce revised the model match hierarchy, it did not address the 
CIT's concerns regarding whether Commerce sufficiently verified the 
alternative cost and sales data upon which it relied in its final 
determination or further consider the issue of potential manipulation 
using the model match hierarchy put forth by LGC (i.e., including AUP, 
PERM, and CRC at 4 g/g increments).\6\ The CIT sustained Commerce's 
final redetermination.\7\
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    \5\ See Final Results of Redetermination Pursuant to Court 
Remand, The Ad Hoc Coalition of American SAP Producers v. United 
States, Court No. 23-00010, Slip Op. 24-00026 (CIT March 1, 2024), 
dated June 14, 2024.
    \6\ Id.
    \7\ See Ad Hoc Coalition of American SAP Producers v. United 
States, Court No. 23-00010, Slip Op. 24-141 (CIT December 17, 2024).
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Timken Notice

    In its decision in Timken,\8\ as clarified by Diamond Sawblades,\9\ 
the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit held that, pursuant 
to sections 516A(c) and (e) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the 
Act), Commerce must publish a notice of court decision that is not ``in 
harmony'' with a Commerce determination and must suspend liquidation of 
entries pending a ``conclusive'' court decision. The CIT's December 17, 
2024, judgment constitutes a final decision of the CIT that is not in 
harmony with Commerce's Final Determination. Thus, this notice is 
published in fulfillment of the publication requirements of Timken.
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    \8\ See Timken Co. v. United States, 893 F.2d 337 (Fed. Cir. 
1990) (Timken).
    \9\ See Diamond Sawblades Manufacturers Coalition v. United 
States, 626 F.3d 1374 (Fed. Cir. 2010) (Diamond Sawblades).
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Amended Final Determination

    Because there is now a final court judgment, Commerce is amending 
its Final Determination with respect to LGC and all other producers and 
exporters as follows:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                             Weighted-
                                                              average
                    Exporter/producer                         dumping
                                                              margin
                                                             (percent)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
LG Chem, Ltd............................................           26.05
All Others..............................................           26.05
------------------------------------------------------------------------

Amended AD Order

    Pursuant to section 735(c)(2) of the Act, Commerce shall ``issue an 
antidumping duty order under section 736'' of the Act when the final 
determination is affirmative. As a result of this amended final 
determination, Commerce is hereby amending the Order to revise the 
weighted-average dumping margins assigned to LGC and all-other 
producers and exporters of subject merchandise, as noted above.

Cash Deposit Requirements

    Because LGC does not have a superseding cash deposit rate, i.e., 
there have been no final results published in a subsequent 
administrative review, and because of the change to the rate assigned 
to all other producers and exporters of subject merchandise, Commerce 
will issue revised cash deposit instructions to U.S. Customs and Border 
Protection.

Notification to Interested Parties

    This notice is issued and published in accordance with sections 
516A(c) and (e) and 777(i)(1) of the Act.

    Dated: December 27, 2024.
Abdelali Elouaradia,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.
[FR Doc. 2024-31591 Filed 1-2-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P
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