[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 108 (Monday, June 6, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 34251-34253]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-12084]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

[A-533-871]


Finished Carbon Steel Flanges From India: Notice of Initiation 
and Preliminary Results of Changed Circumstances Review

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

SUMMARY: In response to a request for a changed circumstances review 
(CCR), the U.S. Department of Commerce (Commerce) is initiating a CCR 
of the antidumping duty (AD) order on finished carbon steel flanges 
(flanges) from India. We preliminarily determine that BFN Forgings 
Private Limited (BFN) is the successor-in-interest to Bebitz Flanges 
Works Private Limited (Bebitz). Interested parties are invited to 
comment on these preliminary results.

DATES: Applicable June 6, 2022.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: James R. Hepburn or Fred Baker, Office 
VI, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, 
U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, 
DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-4885 and (202) 482-2924, respectively.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    On August 24, 2017, Commerce published the AD order on flanges from 
India in the Federal Register.\1\ In the most recent administrative 
review of the Order covering the period August 1, 2019, through July 
31, 2020, Bebitz was assigned the cash deposit rate of 0.00 percent as 
a company not selected for individual review.\2\
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    \1\ See Finished Carbon Steel Flanges from India and Italy: 
Antidumping Duty Orders, 82 FR 40136 (August 24, 2017) (Order).
    \2\ See Finished Carbon Steel Flanges from India: Final Results 
of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review; 2019-2020, 87 FR 13701, 
13703 (March 10, 2022).
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    On April 14, 2022, BFN requested that Commerce conduct an expedited 
CCR to

[[Page 34252]]

find that BFN is the successor-in-interest to Bebitz.\3\ In its 
submission, BFN addressed the factors Commerce analyzes with respect to 
successor-in-interest determinations in the AD context and provided 
supporting documentation.\4\ Commerce received no comments from 
interested parties on BFN's CCR Request.
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    \3\ See BFN's Letter, ``Finished Carbon Steel Flanges from 
India: Request for an Expedited Successor-in-Interest Changed 
Circumstances Review,'' dated April 14, 2022 (CCR Request).
    \4\ Id.
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Scope of the Order

    The merchandise covered by the Order is flanges from India. For a 
full description of the merchandise covered by the scope of the Order, 
see the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.\5\
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    \5\ See Memorandum, ``Finished Carbon Steel Flanges from India: 
Initiation and Preliminary Results of the Changed Circumstances 
Review,'' dated concurrently with, and hereby adopted by, this 
notice (Preliminary Decision Memorandum).
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Initiation of Changed Circumstances Review

    Pursuant to section 751(b)(1) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended 
(the Act), and 19 CFR 351.216, Commerce will conduct a CCR upon receipt 
of a request from an interested party for a review of an AD order which 
shows changed circumstances sufficient to warrant a review of the 
order.\6\ The information submitted by BFN supporting its claim that 
BFN is the successor-in-interest to Bebitz demonstrates changed 
circumstances sufficient to initiate a review.\7\
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    \6\ See 19 CFR 351.216(c).
    \7\ See 19 CFR 351.216(d).
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    The information submitted by BFN demonstrates that its request is 
based solely on a change in the name of the company from ``Bebitz 
Flanges Works Private Limited'' to ``BFN Forgings Private Limited,'' 
effective August 14, 2020.\8\ Moreover, the evidence submitted in 
support of BFN's request demonstrates that BFN is otherwise the same 
business entity as Bebitz. Therefore, in accordance with the regulation 
referenced above, Commerce is initiating a CCR to determine whether BFN 
is the successor-in-interest to Bebitz.
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    \8\ See CCR Request at 3.
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Preliminary Results of Changed Circumstances Review

    When Commerce concludes that expedited action is warranted, it may 
publish the notice of initiation and preliminary results of a CCR 
concurrently.\9\ Commerce has combined the notice of initiation and 
preliminary results in successor-in-interest cases when sufficient 
documentation has been provided supporting the request to make a 
preliminary determination.\10\ In this instance, because we have 
information on the record to support the request for a preliminary 
determination and no other interested party comments, we find that 
expedited action is warranted, and we are combining the notice of 
initiation and the notice of preliminary results of review, in 
accordance with 19 CFR 351.221(c)(3)(ii).
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    \9\ See 19 CFR 351.221(c)(3)(ii).
    \10\ See, e.g., Certain Frozen Freshwater Shrimp from India: 
Notice of Initiation and Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty 
Changed Circumstances Review, 85 FR 57192 (September 15, 2020) 
(Hyson CCR Initiation and Preliminary Results), unchanged in Certain 
Frozen Freshwater Shrimp from India: Notice of Final Results of 
Antidumping Duty Changed Circumstances Review, 85 FR 70584 (November 
5, 2020) (Hyson CCR Final Results).
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    In a CCR, we generally consider a company to be the successor to 
another company for AD cash deposit purposes if the operations of the 
successor are not materially dissimilar from those of its 
predecessor.\11\ In making this determination, Commerce examines a 
number of factors including, but not limited to, changes in: (1) 
management; (2) production facilities; (3) suppliers; and (4) customer 
base.\12\ While no single factor or combination of factors is 
dispositive, Commerce will generally consider one company to be the 
successor to another if its resulting operations are essentially the 
same as that of its predecessor.\13\ Thus, if the evidence demonstrates 
that, with respect to the production and sale of the subject 
merchandise, the new company operates as the same business entity as 
the prior company, Commerce will assign the new company the cash 
deposit rate of its predecessor.\14\
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    \11\ Id.
    \12\ See, e.g., Heavy Walled Rectangular Welded Carbon Steel 
Pipes and Tubes from Turkey: Notice of Initiation and Preliminary 
Results of Changed Circumstances Review, 86 FR 70443 (December 10, 
2021) at 86 FR 70444; unchanged in Heavy Walled Rectangular Welded 
Carbon Steel Pipes and Tubes from Turkey: Final Results of Changed 
Circumstances Review, 87 FR 3763 (January 25, 2022).
    \13\ Id.
    \14\ See, e.g., Hyson CCR Initiation and Preliminary Results, 
unchanged in Hyson CCR Final Results.
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    In its CCR request, BFN provided evidence demonstrating that BFN's 
operations are not materially dissimilar from those of Bebitz. Based on 
the record, we preliminarily determine that BFN is the successor-in-
interest to Bebitz. For a complete discussion of the information that 
BFN provided, including business proprietary information, and the 
complete successor-in-interest analysis, see the Preliminary Decision 
Memorandum.\15\ 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 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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    \15\ See Preliminary Decision Memorandum.
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Public Comment

    Any interested party may request a hearing within 14 days of 
publication of this notice, in accordance with 19 CFR 351.310(c).\16\ 
Interested parties may submit case briefs no later than 14 days after 
the date of publication of this notice.\17\ Rebuttal briefs, limited to 
issues raised in the case briefs, may be filed no later than seven days 
after the deadline for case briefs, in accordance with 19 CFR 
351.309(d). Parties who submit case or rebuttal briefs in this CCR are 
requested to submit with each argument: (1) a statement of the issue; 
(2) a brief summary of the argument; and (3) a table of 
authorities.\18\ All comments are to be filed electronically using 
ACCESS, and must also be served on interested parties. An 
electronically filed document must be received successfully in its 
entirety by ACCESS by 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time on the day it is due.\19\ 
Note that Commerce has temporarily modified certain requirements for 
serving documents containing business proprietary information, until 
further notice.\20\
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    \16\ Commerce is exercising its discretion under 19 CFR 
351.310(c) to alter the time limit for requesting a hearing.
    \17\ Commerce is exercising its discretion under 19 CFR 
351.309(c)(1)(ii) to alter the time limit for the filing of case 
briefs.
    \18\ See 19 CFR 351.309(c)(2) and (d)(2).
    \19\ See 19 CFR 351.303(b).
    \20\ See Temporary Rule Modifying AD/CVD Service Requirements 
Due to COVID-19; Extension of Effective Period, 85 FR 41363 (July 
10, 2020).
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    Consistent with 19 CFR 351.216(e), we will issue the final results 
of this CCR no later than 270 days after the date on which this review 
was initiated, or within 45 days of publication of these preliminary 
results if all parties agree to the preliminary finding.

Notification to Interested Parties

    We are issuing and publishing this initiation and preliminary 
results notice in accordance with sections 751(b)(1)

[[Page 34253]]

and 777(i) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.216 and 351.221(c)(3).

    Dated: May 27, 2022.
Lisa W. Wang,
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.

Appendix

List of Topics Discussed in Preliminary Decision Memorandum

I. Background
II. Scope of the Order
III. Initiation And Preliminary Results of the Changed Circumstances 
Review
IV. Successor-in-Interest Determination
V. Recommendation
[FR Doc. 2022-12084 Filed 6-3-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P