40748 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 165 / Monday, August 28, 2017 / Notices 

1See Biodiesel from Argentina and Indonesia: 

Initiation of Countervailing Duty Investigations, 82 

FR 18423 (April 19, 2017) (Initiation Notice). 

2See Biodiesel from Argentina and Indonesia: 

Postponement of Preliminary Determinations of 

Antidumping Duty Investigations, 82 FR 25773 

(June 5, 2017); see also Notice of Clarification: 

Application of ‘‘Next Business Day’’ Rule for 

Administrative Determination Deadlines Pursuant 

to the Tariff Act of 1930, As Amended, 70 FR 24533 

(May 10, 2005). 

3See Memorandum, ‘‘Decision Memorandum for 

the Preliminary Determination of the 

Countervailing Duty Investigation of Biodiesel from 

Argentina,’’ dated concurrently with, and hereby 

adopted by, this notice (Preliminary Decision 

Memorandum). 

4See Antidumping Duties; Countervailing Duties, 

Final Rule, 62 FR 27296, 27323 (May 19, 1997). 

5See Initiation Notice. 

6See 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. 

7See sections 776(a) and (b) of the Act. 

Dated: August 21, 2017. 

Gary Taverman, 

Deputy Assistant Secretary for Antidumping 

and Countervailing Duty Operations, 

performing the non-exclusive functions and 

duties of the Assistant Secretary for 

Enforcement and Compliance. 

Appendix I—List of Topics Discussed in 

the Preliminary Decision Memorandum 

I. Summary 

II. Background 

III. Scope Comments 

IV. Scope of the Investigation 

V. Injury Test 

VI. New Subsidy Allegation 

VII. Subsidies Valuation 

VIII. Analysis of Programs 

IX. Calculation of All-Others Rate 

X. ITC Notification 

XI. Disclosure and Public Comment 

XII. Verification 

XIII. Conclusion 

Appendix I—List of Additional Companies 

Preliminarily Found to be Cross-Owned with 

Musim Mas and Intibenua 

Appendix II—List of Additional 

Companies Preliminarily Found to be CrossOwned with Wilmar Trading 

Appendix II—Scope of the Investigation 

The product covered by this investigation 

is biodiesel, which is a fuel comprised of 

mono-alkyl esters of long chain fatty acids 

derived from vegetable oils or animal fats, 

including biologically-based waste oils or 

greases, and other biologically based oil or fat 

sources. This investigation covers biodiesel 

in pure form (B100) as well as fuel mixtures 

containing at least 99 percent biodiesel by 

volume (B99). For fuel mixtures containing 

less than 99 percent biodiesel by volume, 

only the biodiesel component of the mixture 

is covered by the scope of this investigation. 

Biodiesel is generally produced to 

American Society for Testing and Materials 

International (ASTM) D6751 specifications, 

but it can also be made to other 

specifications. Biodiesel commonly has one 

of the following Chemical Abstracts Service 

(CAS) numbers, generally depending upon 

the feedstock used: 67784-80-9 (soybean oil 

methyl esters); 91051-34-2 (palm oil methyl 

esters); 91051-32-0 (palm kernel oil methyl 

esters); 73891-99-3 (rapeseed oil methyl 

esters); 61788-61-2 (tallow methyl esters); 

68990-52-3 (vegetable oil methyl esters); 

129828-16-6 (canola oil methyl esters); 

67762-26-9 (unsaturated alkylcarboxylic acid 

methyl ester); or 68937-84-8 (fatty acids, 

C12–C18, methyl ester). 

The B100 product subject to this 

investigation is currently classifiable under 

subheading 3826.00.1000 of the Harmonized 

Tariff Schedule of the United States 

(HTSUS), while the B99 product is currently 

classifiable under HTSUS subheading 

3826.00.3000. Although the HTSUS 

subheadings, ASTM specifications, and CAS 

numbers are provided for convenience and 

customs purposes, the written description of 

the scope is dispositive. 

[FR Doc. 2017–18167 Filed 8–25–17; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–DS–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

International Trade Administration 

[C–357–821] 

Biodiesel From Argentina: Preliminary 

Affirmative Countervailing Duty 

Determination and Preliminary 

Affirmative Critical Circumstances 

Determination, in Part 

AGENCY: Enforcement and Compliance, 

International Trade Administration, 

Department of Commerce. 

SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce 

(the Department) preliminarily 

determines that countervailable 

subsidies are being provided to 

producers and exporters of biodiesel 

from Argentina. The period of 

investigation is January 1, 2016, through 

December 31, 2016. 

DATES: August 28, 2017. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Elfi 

Blum-Page or Kathryn Wallace, 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) 482–0197 or (202) 482–6251, 

respectively. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

This preliminary determination is 

made in accordance with section 703(b) 

of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended 

(the Act). The Department published the 

notice of initiation of this investigation 

on April 19, 2017.1 On June 5, 2017, the 

Department postponed the preliminary 

determination of this investigation to 

August 20, 2017. However, because 

August 20, 2017, falls on a Sunday, the 

preliminary determination was 

postponed until August 21, 2017.2 A 

complete description of the events that 

followed the initiation of this 

investigation, see the Preliminary 

Decision Memorandum.3 A list of topics 

discussed in the Preliminary Decision 

Memorandum is included as Appendix 

II 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, and is available to all 

parties in the Central Records Unit, 

room B8024 of the main Department of 

Commerce building. In addition, a 

complete version of the Preliminary 

Decision Memorandum can be accessed 

directly at http://enforcement.trade.gov/ 

frn/. The signed and electronic versions 

of the Preliminary Decision 

Memorandum are identical in content. 

Scope of the Investigation 

The product covered by this 

investigation is biodiesel from 

Argentina. For a complete description of 

the scope of this investigation, see 

Appendix I. 

Scope Comments 

In accordance with the preamble to 

the Department’s regulations,4 the 

Initiation Notice set aside a period of 

time for parties to raise issues regarding 

product coverage, (i.e., scope).5 No 

interested party commented on the 

scope of the investigation as it appeared 

in the Initiation Notice. 

Methodology 

The Department is conducting this 

investigation in accordance with section 

701 of the Act. For each of the subsidy 

programs found countervailable, the 

Department 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.6

In making these findings, the 

Department relied, in part, on facts 

available and, because one or more 

respondents did not act to the best of 

their ability to respond to the 

Department’s requests for information, 

an adverse inference was drawn, where 

appropriate, in selecting from among the 

facts otherwise available.7 For further 

information, see ‘‘Use of Facts 

Otherwise Available and Adverse 

Inferences’’ in the Preliminary Decision 

Memorandum. 


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Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 165 / Monday, August 28, 2017 / Notices 40749 

8With two respondents under examination, the 

Department normally calculates (A) a weighted 

average of the estimated subsidy rates calculated for 

the examined respondents; (B) a simple average of 

the estimated subsidy rates calculated for the 

examined respondents; and (C) a weighted average 

of the estimated subsidy rates calculated for the 

examined respondents using each company’s 

publicly-ranged U.S. sale quantities for the 

merchandise under consideration. The Department 

then compares (B) and (C) to (A) and selects the rate 

closest to (A) as the most appropriate rate for all 

other producers and exporters. See, e.g., Ball 

Bearings and Parts Thereof from France, Germany, 

Italy, Japan, and the United Kingdom: Final Results 

of Antidumping Duty Administrative Reviews, Final 

Results of Changed-Circumstances Review, and 

Revocation of an Order in Part, 75 FR 53661, 53663 

(September 1, 2010). As complete publicly ranged 

sales data was available, the Department based the 

all-others rate on the publicly ranged sales data of 

the mandatory respondents. For a complete analysis 

of the data, please see the All-Others’ Rate 

Calculation Memorandum. 

9As discussed in the Preliminary Decision 

Memorandum, the Department has found the 

following companies to be cross-owned with LDC 

Argentina S.A.: LDC Semillas S.A., Semillas del 

Rosario S.A. 

10As discussed in the Preliminary Decision 

Memorandum, the Department has found the 

following companies to be cross-owned with 

Vicentin S.A.I.C.: Oleaginosa San Lorenzo S.A, Los 

Amores S.A. 

11See 19 CFR 351.309; see also 19 CFR 351.303 

(for general filing requirements). 

12As of the signing of this notice, the petitioner 

(the National Biodiesel Fair Trade Coalition) had 

not requested that the date of the final 

determination of this investigation be aligned with 

the date of the final determination of the 

companion antidumping investigation, pursuant to 

section 705(a)(1) of the Act. Therefore, the current 

date for the final determination of this investigation 

is 75 days from the signature of this preliminary 

determination, November 6, 2017. 

Preliminary Affirmative Determination 

of Critical Circumstances, in Part 

In accordance with section 703(e)(1) 

of the Act, the Department preliminarily 

determines that critical circumstances 

exist with respect to imports of 

biodiesel from Argentina for LDC 

Argentina and Vicentin, but do not exist 

with respect to all other exporters or 

producers not individually examined. 

For a full description of the 

methodology and results of the 

Department’s analysis, see the 

Preliminary Decision Memorandum. 

All-Others Rate 

Sections 703(d) and 705(c)(5)(A) of 

the Act provide that in the preliminary 

determination, the Department shall 

determine an estimated all-others rate 

for companies not individually 

examined. This rate shall be an amount 

equal to the weighted average of the 

estimated subsidy rates established for 

those companies individually 

examined, excluding any zero and de 

minimis rates and any rates based 

entirely under section 776 of the Act. In 

this investigation, the Department 

calculated individual estimated 

countervailable subsidy rates for LDC 

Argentina and Vicentin that are not 

zero, de minimis, or based entirely on 

facts otherwise available. The 

Department calculated the all-others’ 

rate using a weighted average of the 

individual estimated subsidy rates 

calculated for the examined respondents 

using each company’s publicly-ranged 

values for the merchandise under 

consideration.8

Preliminary Determination 

The Department preliminarily 

determines that the following estimated 

countervailable subsidy rates exist: 

Company Subsidy rate 

(percent) 

LDC Argentina S.A.9 ............ 50.29 

Vicentin S.A.I.C.10 ................ 64.17 

All-Others .............................. 57.01 

Suspension of Liquidation 

In accordance with section 

703(d)(1)(B) and (d)(2) ofthe Act, the 

Departmentwill direct U.S. Customs and 

Border Protection (CBP) to suspend 

liquidation of entries of subject 

merchandise as described in the scope 

of the investigation section entered, or 

withdrawn from warehouse, for 

consumption on or after the date of 

publication of this notice in the Federal 

Register. Further, pursuant to 19 CFR 

351.205(d), the Department will instruct 

CBP to require a cash deposit equal to 

the rates indicated above. 

Section 703(e)(2) of the Act provides 

that, given an affirmative determination 

of critical circumstances, any 

suspension of liquidation shall apply to 

unliquidated entries of merchandise 

entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, 

for consumption on or after the later of 

(a) the date which is 90 days before the 

date on which the suspension of 

liquidation was first ordered, or (b) the 

date on which notice of initiation of the 

investigation was published. The 

Department preliminarily finds that 

critical circumstances exist for imports 

of subject merchandise produced and/or 

exported by LDC Argentina and 

Vicentin. In accordance with section 

703(e)(2)(A) of the Act, the suspension 

of liquidation shall apply to 

unliquidated entries of merchandise 

from the exporters/producers identified 

in this paragraph that were entered, or 

withdrawn from warehouse, for 

consumption on or after the date which 

is 90 days before the publication of this 

notice. 

Disclosure 

The Department intends to disclose 

its calculations and analysis performed 

to interested parties in this preliminary 

determination within five days of its 

public announcement, or if there is no 

public announcement, within five days 

of the date of this notice in accordance 

with 19 CFR 351.224(b). 

Verification 

As provided in section 782(i)(1) of the 

Act, the Department intends to verify 

the information relied upon in making 

its final determination. 

Public Comment and Request for 

Hearing 

Case briefs or other written comments 

may be submitted to the Assistant 

Secretary for Enforcement and 

Compliance no later than seven days 

after the date on which the last 

verification report is issued in this 

investigation. Rebuttal briefs, limited to 

issues raised in case briefs, may be 

submitted no later than five days after 

the deadline date for case briefs.11

Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.309(c)(2) and 

(d)(2), parties who submit case briefs or 

rebuttal briefs in this investigation are 

encouraged to submit with each 

argument: (1) A statement of the issue; 

(2) a brief summary of the argument; 

and (3) a table of authorities. 

Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.310(c), 

interested parties who wish to request a 

hearing, limited to issues raised in the 

case and rebuttal briefs, must submit a 

written request to the Assistant 

Secretary for Enforcement and 

Compliance, U.S. Department of 

Commerce within 30 days after the date 

of publication of this notice. Requests 

should contain the party’s name, 

address, and telephone number, the 

number of participants, whether any 

participant is a foreign national, and a 

list of the issues to be discussed. If a 

request for a hearing is made, the 

Department intends to hold the hearing 

at the U.S. Department of Commerce, 

1401 Constitution Avenue NW., 

Washington, DC 20230, at a time and 

date to be determined. Parties should 

confirm by telephone the date, time, and 

location of the hearing two days before 

the scheduled date. 

International Trade Commission 

Notification 

In accordance with section 703(f) of 

the Act, the Department will notify the 

International Trade Commission (ITC) of 

its determination. In accordance with 

section 705(b)(2) of the Act, if our final 

determination is affirmative,12 the ITC 


asabaliauskas on DSKBBXCHB2PROD with NOTICES
40750 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 165 / Monday, August 28, 2017 / Notices 

will make its final determination within 

45 days after the Department makes its 

final determination. 

Notification to Interested Parties 

This determination is issued and 

published pursuant to sections 703(f) 

and 777(i) of the Act and 19 CFR 

351.205(c). 

Dated: August 21, 2017. 

Gary Taverman 

Deputy Assistant Secretary for Antidumping 

and Countervailing Duty Operations, 

performing the non-exclusive function and 

duties of the Assistant Secretary for 

Enforcement and Compliance. 

Appendix I—Scope of the Investigation 

The product covered by this investigation 

is biodiesel, which is a fuel comprised of 

mono-alkyl esters of long chain fatty acids 

derived from vegetable oils or animal fats, 

including biologically-based waste oils or 

greases, and other biologically-based oil or fat 

sources. The investigations cover biodiesel in 

pure form (B100) as well as fuel mixtures 

containing at least 99 percent biodiesel by 

volume (B99). For fuel mixtures containing 

less than 99 percent biodiesel by volume, 

only the biodiesel component of the mixture 

is covered by the scope of the investigations. 

Biodiesel is generally produced to 

American Society for Testing and Materials 

International (ASTM) D6751 specifications, 

but it can also be made to other 

specifications. Biodiesel commonly has one 

of the following Chemical Abstracts Service 

(CAS) numbers, generally depending upon 

the feedstock used: 67784–80–9 (soybean oil 

methyl esters); 91051–34–2 (palm oil methyl 

esters); 91051–32–0 (palm kernel oil methyl 

esters); 73891–99–3 (rapeseed oil methyl 

esters); 61788–61–2 (tallow methyl esters); 

68990–52–3 (vegetable oil methyl esters); 

129828–16–6 (canola oil methyl esters); 

67762–26–9 (unsaturated alkylcarboxylic 

acid methyl ester); or 68937–84–8 (fatty 

acids, C12–C18, methyl ester). 

The B100 product subject to the 

investigation is currently classifiable under 

subheading 3826.00.1000 of the Harmonized 

Tariff Schedule of the United States 

(HTSUS), while the B99 product is currently 

classifiable under HTSUS subheading 

3826.00.3000. Although the HTSUS 

subheadings, ASTM specifications, and CAS 

numbers are provided for convenience and 

customs purposes, the written description of 

the scope is dispositive. 

Appendix II—List of Topics Discussed 

in the Preliminary Decision 

Memorandum 

I. Summary 

II. Background 

III. Scope Comments 

IV. Scope of the Investigation 

V. Injury Test 

VI. Preliminary Determination of Critical 

Circumstances 

VII. Use of Facts Otherwise Available and 

Adverse Facts Available 

VIII. Subsidies Valuation 

IX. Analysis of Programs 

X. Calculation of All-Others Rate 

XI. ITC Notification 

XII. Disclosure and Public Comment 

XIII. Verification 

XIV. Conclusion 

[FR Doc. 2017–18166 Filed 8–25–17; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–DS–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

Evaluation of National Estuarine 

Research Reserve 

AGENCY: Office for Coastal Management 

(OCM), National Ocean Service (NOS), 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration (NOAA), Department of 

Commerce (DOC). 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Office for Coastal Management will hold 

a public meeting to solicit comments for 

the performance evaluation of the 

Padilla Bay National Estuarine Research 

Reserve. 

DATES: Padilla Bay National Estuarine 

Research Reserve Evaluation: The 

public meeting will be held on 

Wednesday, September 27, 2017, and 

written comments must be received on 

or before Friday, October 6, 2017. 

For specific dates, times, and 

locations of the public meeting, see 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

on the reserves and coastal program 

NOAA intends to evaluate by any of the 

following methods: 

Public Meeting and Oral Comments: 

A public meeting will be held in Mt. 

Vernon, Washington for the Padilla Bay 

Reserve. For the specific location, see 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION. 

Written Comments: Please direct 

written comments to Ralph Cantral, 

Senior Advisor, NOAA Office for 

Coastal Management, 1305 East West 

Highway N/OCM1, Silver Spring, MD 

20910, or via email to Ralph.Cantral@

noaa.gov. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Ralph Cantral, Senior Advisor, Policy, 

NOAA Office for Coastal Management, 

1305 East West Highway N/OCM1, 

Silver Spring, MD 20910, (240) 533– 

0729, or via email to Ralph.Cantral@

noaa.gov. Copies of the previous 

evaluation findings, Management Plan, 

and Site Profile may be viewed and 

downloaded on the Internet at http://

coast.noaa.gov/czm/evaluations. A copy 

of the evaluation notification letter and 

most recent performance report may be 

obtained upon request by contacting the 

person identified under FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Sections 

312 and 315 of the Coastal Zone 

Management Act (CZMA) require 

NOAA to conduct periodic evaluations 

of federally approved national estuarine 

research reserves. The process includes 

a public meeting, consideration of 

written public comments and 

consultations with interested Federal, 

state, and local agencies and members of 

the public. For the evaluation of 

National Estuarine Research Reserves, 

NOAA will consider the extent to which 

the state has met the national objectives, 

adhered to its management plan 

approved by the Secretary of Commerce, 

and adhered to the terms of financial 

assistance under the Coastal Zone 

Management Act. When the evaluation 

is completed, NOAA’s Office for Coastal 

Management will place a notice in the 

Federal Register announcing the 

availability of the Final Evaluation 

Findings. 

Specific information on the periodic 

evaluation of reserves that are the 

subject of this notice are detailed below 

as follows: 

Padilla Bay National Estuarine 

Research Reserve Evaluation 

You may participate or submit oral 

comments at the public meeting 

scheduled as follows: 

Date: September 27, 2017. 

Time: 7:00 p.m., local time. 

Location: Padilla Bay Reserve 

Interpretive Center, 10441 BayviewEdison Road, Mt. Vernon, WA 98273. 

Written comments must be received 

on or before October 6, 2017. 

Dated: July 27, 2017. 

Federal Domestic Assistance Catalog 11.419 

Coastal Zone Management Program 

Administration 

Paul M. Scholz, 

Deputy Director, Office for Coastal 

Management, National Ocean Service, 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration. 

[FR Doc. 2017–18192 Filed 8–25–17; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–08–P 


asabaliauskas on DSKBBXCHB2PROD with NOTICES