E9-11174. Certain Circular Welded Carbon Quality Steel Line Pipe from the People's Republic of China: Antidumping Duty Order

AGENCY:

Import Administration, International Trade Administration, Department of Commerce.

EFFECTIVE DATE:

May 13, 2009.

SUMMARY:

Based on affirmative final determinations by the Department of Commerce (the Department) and the International Trade Commission (ITC), the Department is issuing an antidumping duty order on certain circular welded carbon quality steel line pipe from the People's Republic of China (PRC).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Jeff Pedersen or Rebecca Pandolph, AD/CVD Operations, Office 4, Import Administration, International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 14th Street and Constitution Avenue, NW, Washington, DC, 20230; telephone: [phone] and 482-3627, respectively.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

In accordance with sections 735(d) and 777(i)(1) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act), on March 31, 2009, the Department published in the Federal Register its final determination in the instant investigation. See Certain Circular Welded Carbon Quality Steel Line Pipe from the People's Republic of China: Final Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value, 74 FR 14514 (March 31, 2009).

On May 6, 2009, the ITC notified the Department of its affirmative final determination of material injury to a U.S. industry. See Certain Circular Welded Carbon Quality Steel Line Pipe from China, Investigation No. 731-TA-1149 (Final), USITC Publication 4075 (May 2009).

Scope of the Order

The merchandise covered by this order is circular welded carbon quality steel pipe of a kind used for oil and gas pipelines (welded line pipe), not more than 406.4 mm (16 inches) in outside diameter, regardless of wall thickness, length, surface finish, end finish or stenciling.

The term “carbon quality steel” includes both carbon steel and carbon steel mixed with small amounts of alloying elements that may exceed the individual weight limits for nonalloy steels imposed in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS). Specifically, the term “carbon quality” includes products in which (1) iron predominates by weight over each of the other contained elements, (2) the carbon content is 2 percent or less by weight and (3) none of the elements listed below exceeds the quantity by weight respectively indicated:

(i) 2.00 percent of manganese,

(ii) 2.25 percent of silicon,

(iii) 1.00 percent of copper,

(iv) 0.50 percent of aluminum,

(v) 1.25 percent of chromium,

(vi) 0.30 percent of cobalt,

(vii) 0.40 percent of lead,

(viii) 1.25 percent of nickel,

(ix) 0.30 percent of tungsten,

(x) 0.012 percent of boron,

(xi) 0.50 percent of molybdenum,

(xii) 0.15 percent of niobium,

(xiii) 0.41 percent of titanium,

(xiv) 0.15 percent of vanadium, or

(xv) 0.15 percent of zirconium.

Welded line pipe is normally produced to specifications published by the American Petroleum Institute (API) (or comparable foreign specifications) including API A-25, 5LA, 5LB, and X grades from 42 and above, and/or any other proprietary grades or non-graded material. Nevertheless, all pipe meeting the physical description set forth above that is of a kind used in oil and gas pipelines, including all multiple-stenciled pipe with an API welded line pipe stencil is covered by the scope of this order.

Excluded from this scope are pipes of a kind used for oil and gas pipelines that are multiple-stenciled to a standard and/or structural specification and have one or more of the following characteristics: is 32 feet in length or less; is less than 2.0 inches (50 mm) in outside diameter; has a galvanized and/or painted surface finish; or has a threaded and/or coupled end finish. (The term “painted” does not include coatings to inhibit rust in transit, such as varnish, but includes coatings such as polyester.)

The welded line pipe products that are the subject of this order are currently classifiable in the HTSUS under subheadings 7306.19.10.10, 7306.19.10.50, 7306.19.51.10, and 7306.19.51.50. While HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience and customs purposes, the written description of the scope of this order is dispositive.

Provisional Measures

Section 733(d) of the Act states that suspension of liquidation ordered pursuant to an affirmative preliminary determination may not remain in effect for more than four months except where exporters representing a significant proportion of exports of the subject merchandise request the Department to extend that four-month period to no more than six months. At the request of an exporter that accounted for a significant proportion of exports of welded line pipe, we extended the four-month period to no more than six months. See Certain Circular Welded Carbon Quality Steel Line Pipe from the People's Republic of China: Preliminary Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value and Postponement of Final Determination, 73 FR 66012 (November 6, 2008) (Preliminary Determination). In this investigation, the six-month period beginning on the date of the publication of the Preliminary Determination (i.e., November 6, 2008) ended on May 4, 2009.

Section 737 of the Act states that definitive duties are to begin on the date of publication of the ITC's final injury determination. Therefore, in accordance with section 733(d) of the Act, we have instructed U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to terminate suspension of liquidation and to liquidate without regard to antidumping duties (i.e., release all bonds and refund all cash deposits), unliquidated entries of welded line pipe from the PRC entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption after May 4, 2009, and before the date of publication of the ITC's final injury determination in the Federal Register. Suspension of liquidation will resume on or after the date of publication of the ITC's final injury determination in the Federal Register.

Antidumping Duty Order

On May 6, 2009, in accordance with section 735(d) of the Act, the ITC notified the Department of its final determination, pursuant to section 735(b)(1)(A)(i) of the Act, that an industry in the United States is materially injured by reason of less-than-fair-value imports of subject merchandise from the PRC. Therefore, in accordance with section 736(a)(1) of the Act, the Department will direct CBP to assess, upon further instruction by the Department, antidumping duties equal to the amount by which the normal value of the merchandise exceeds the export price of the merchandise for all relevant entries of welded line pipe from the PRC. Except for the entries noted above,¹ these antidumping duties will be assessed on all unliquidated entries of welded line pipe from the PRC entered, or withdrawn from the warehouse, for consumption on or after November 6, 2008, the date on which the Department published its Preliminary Determination. See Preliminary Determination.

Effective on the date of publication of the ITC's final affirmative injury determination, CBP will require, at the same time as importers would normally deposit estimated duties on this merchandise, a cash deposit based on the estimated weighted-average antidumping duty margins listed below. The cash deposit rate for the exporter-producer combinations listed below will be 73.44 percent, which is equal to the estimated weighted-average antidumping duty margins for the exporter-producer combinations, reduced by the export subsidy rate determined for Huludao Pipe in Circular Welded Carbon Quality Steel Line Pipe from the People's Republic of China: Notice of Amended Final Affirmative Countervailing Duty Determination and Notice of Countervailing Duty Order, 74 FR 4136 (January 23, 2009). The cash deposit rate for all exporter-producer combinations not listed below will be equal to the estimated weighted-average antidumping duty margin applicable to the combination. The “PRC-wide” rate applies to all exporters of subject merchandise not specifically listed. The weighted-average dumping margins are as follows:

Exporter & Producer	Weighted-Average Margin
Huludao Steel Pipe Industrial Co., Ltd./
Huludao City Steel Pipe Industrial Co., Ltd.	73.87%
Produced by: Huludao Steel Pipe Industrial Co., Ltd. / Huludao City Steel Pipe Industrial Co., Ltd.
Pangang Group Beihai Steel Pipe Corporation	73.87%
Produced by: Pangang Group Beihai Steel Pipe Corporation
Jiangsu Yulong Steel Pipe Co., Ltd.	73.87%
Produced by: Jiangsu Yulong Steel Pipe Co., Ltd.
Tianjin Xingyuda Import and Export Co., Ltd.	73.87%
Produced by: Tianjin Lifengyuanda Steel Pipe Group Co., Ltd.
PRC-Wide Rate	101.10%

This notice constitutes the antidumping duty order with respect to welded line pipe from the PRC pursuant to section 736(a) of the Act. Interested parties may contact the Department's Central Records Unit, Room 1117 of the main Commerce building, for copies of an updated list of antidumping duty orders currently in effect.

This order is published in accordance with section 736(a) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.211.

Dated: May 7, 2009.

Ronald K. Lorentzen,

Acting Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.

Footnotes

1.  Namely, entries of welded line pipe from the PRC entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption after May 4, 2009, and before the date of publication of the ITC's final injury determination in the Federal Register.