2016-11388. Solid Fertilizer Grade Ammonium Nitrate From the Russian Federation; Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review; Preliminary Determination of No Shipments; 2014-2015

AGENCY:

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

SUMMARY:

The Department of Commerce (the Department) is conducting an administrative review of the antidumping duty order on solid fertilizer grade ammonium nitrate (ammonium nitrate) from the Russian Federation. The review covers two producer/exporters of the subject merchandise, JSC Acron and its affiliate JSC Dorogobuzh (collectively, Acron) and MCC EuroChem and its affiliates OJSC NAK Azot and OJSC Nevinnomyssky Azot (collectively, EuroChem). The period of review (POR) is April 1, 2014, through March 31, 2015. We preliminarily determine that sales of subject merchandise to the United States have not been made at prices below normal value (NV). The Department preliminarily finds that EuroChem made no shipments of subject merchandise during the POR. We invite all interested parties to comment on these preliminary results.

DATES:

Effective Date: May 13, 2016.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Elizabeth Eastwood or David Crespo, AD/CVD Operations, Office II, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 14th Street and Constitution Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20230; telephone: [phone], or [phone], respectively.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

As explained in the memorandum from the Acting Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance, the Department has exercised its discretion to toll all administrative deadlines due to the recent closure of the Federal Government. All deadlines in this segment of the proceeding have been extended by four business days. The revised deadline for the preliminary results of this review is now May 5, 2016.^[1]

Scope of the Order

The merchandise subject to this order is solid, fertilizer grade ammonium nitrate products. The merchandise subject to this order is classified in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) at subheadings 3102.30.00.00 and 3102.290000. Although the HTSUS subheadings are provided for convenience and customs purposes, the written description of the merchandise within the scope is dispositive.^[2]

Methodology

The Department is conducting this review in accordance with section 751(a)(2) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act). Constructed export price is calculated in accordance with section 772 of the Act. NV is calculated in accordance with section 773 of the Act.

For a full description of the methodology underlying our conclusions, see the Preliminary Decision Memorandum. A list of the topics included in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum is attached 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,, and it is available to all paries 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 the electronic versions of the Preliminary Decision Memorandum are identical in content.

Preliminary Determination of No Shipments

On June 25, 2015, EuroChem properly filed a statement reporting that it made no shipments of subject merchandise to the United States during the POR. Additionally, our inquiry to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) did not identify any POR entries of EuroChem's subject merchandise. Based on the foregoing, the Department preliminarily determines that EuroChem did not have any reviewable transactions during the POR. For additional information regarding this determination, see the Preliminary Decision Memorandum. Consistent with our practice, we are not preliminarily rescinding the review with respect to EuroChem but, rather, we will complete the review with respect to this company and issue appropriate instructions to CBP based on the final results of this review.^[3]

Preliminary Results of the Review

The Department preliminarily determines that the following weighted-average dumping margin exists:

Producer/exporter	Weighted- average dumping margin (percent)
JSC Acron/JSC Dorogobuzh	0.00

Disclosure and Public Comment

The Department intends to disclose the calculations performed in connection with these preliminary results to interested parties within five days after the date of publication of this notice.^[4] Interested parties may submit cases briefs to the Department no later than 30 days after the date of publication of this notice.^[5] Rebuttal briefs, limited to issues raised in the case briefs, may be filed no later than five days after the time limit for filing case briefs.^[6] Parties who submit case briefs or rebuttal briefs in this proceeding 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.^[7] Case and rebuttal briefs should be filed using ACCESS.^[8]

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 within 30 days of 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 (3) A list of issues parties intend to discuss. Issues raised in the hearing will be limited to those raised in the respective case and rebuttal briefs. If a request for a hearing is made, parties will be notified of the time and date for the hearing to be held at the U.S. Department of Commerce, 14th Street and Constitution Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20230.^[9]

The Department intends to issue the final results of this administrative review, including the results of its analysis of the issues raised in any written briefs, not later than 120 days after the date of publication of this notice, pursuant to section 751(a)(3)(A) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.213(h), unless this deadline is extended.

Assessment Rates

Upon issuance of the final results, the Department shall determine, and CBP shall assess, antidumping duties on all appropriate entries covered by this review.^[10] We will instruct CBP to assess antidumping duties on all appropriate entries covered by this review when the importer-specific assessment rate calculated in the final results of this review is not zero or de minimis. Where the respondent's weighted-average dumping margin is zero or de minimis, or an importer-specific assessment rate is zero or de minimis, we will instruct CBP to liquidate the appropriate entries without regard to antidumping duties.

The Department clarified its “automatic assessment” regulation on May 6, 2003.^[11] This clarification will apply to entries of subject merchandise during the POR produced by the respondents for which the company did not know that the merchandise was destined for the United States. In such instances, we will instruct CBP to liquidate unreviewed entries at the all others rate if there is no rate for the intermediate company(ies) involved in the transaction.

We intend to issue instructions to CBP 15 days after publication of the final results of this review.

Cash Deposit Requirements

The following deposit requirements will be effective upon publication of the notice of final results of administrative review for all shipments of the subject merchandise entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after the date of publication as provided by section 751(a)(2)(C) of the Act: (1) The cash deposit rate for Acron will be equal to the weighted-average dumping margins established in the final results of this administrative review, except if the rate is less than 0.50 percent and, therefore, de minimis within the meaning of 19 CFR 351.106(c)(1), in which case the cash deposit rate will be zero; (2) for merchandise exported by EuroChem or by manufacturers or exporters not covered in this review but covered in a prior segment of the proceeding, the cash deposit rate will continue to be the company-specific rate published for the most recently completed segment; (3) if the exporter is not a firm covered in this review, or the original investigation, but the manufacturer is, the cash deposit rate will be the rate established for the most recently completed segment for the manufacturer of the merchandise; and (4) the cash deposit rate for all other manufacturers or exporters will continue to be 253.98 percent, the all-others rate established in the order.^[12] These cash deposit requirements, when imposed, shall remain in effect until further notice.

Notification to Importers

This notice also serves as a preliminary reminder to importers of their responsibility under 19 CFR 351.402(f) to file a certificate regarding the reimbursement of antidumping duties prior to liquidation of the relevant entries during this review period. Failure to comply with this requirement could result in the Secretary's presumption that reimbursement of antidumping duties occurred and the subsequent assessment of double antidumping duties.

Notification to Interested Parties

We are issuing and publishing these results in accordance with sections 751(a)(1) and 777(i)(1) of the Act.

Dated: May 5, 2016.

Paul Piquado,

Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.

Appendix—List of Topics Discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum

I. Summary

II. Background

III. Scope of the Order

IV. Preliminary Determination of No Shipments

V. Discussion of the Methodology

a. Normal Value Comparisons

b. Determination of Comparison Method

c. Results of the Differential Pricing Analysis

d. Product Comparisons

e. Date of Sale

f. Constructed Export Price

g. Normal Value

h. Currency Conversion

VI. Recommendation

Footnotes

1.  See Memorandum to the Record from Ron Lorentzen, Acting A/S for Enforcement & Compliance, regarding “Tolling of Administrative Deadlines As a Result of the Government Closure During Snowstorm Jonas,” dated January 27, 2016.

2.  For a complete description of the scope of the order, see the memorandum from Gary Taverman, Associate Deputy Assistant Secretary for Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Operations, to Paul Piquado, Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance, entitled, “Decision Memorandum for the Preliminary Results of the 2014-2015 Administrative Review of the Antidumping Duty Order on Solid Fertilizer Grade Ammonium Nitrate from the Russian Federation,” (Preliminary Decision Memorandum), dated concurrently with and hereby adopted by this notice.

3.  See e.g., Certain Frozen Warmwater Shrimp From Thailand; Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review, Partial Rescission of Review, Preliminary Determination of No Shipments; 2012-2013, 79 FR 15951, 15952 (March 24, 2014), unchanged in Certain Frozen Warmwater Shrimp From Thailand: Final Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review, Final Determination of No Shipments, and Partial Rescission of Review; 2012-2013, 79 FR at 51306 (August 28, 2014).

4.  See 19 CFR 351.224(b).

5.  See 19 CFR 351.309(c)

6.  See 19 CFR 351.309(d).

7.  See 19 CFR 351.309(c)(2) and (d)(2).

8.  See 19 CFR 351.303.

9.  See 19 CFR 351.310(d).

10.  See 19 CFR 351.212(b)(1).

11.  For a full discussion of this clarification, see Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Proceedings: Assessment of Antidumping Duties, 68 FR 23954 (May 6, 2003).

12.  See Termination of the Suspension Agreement on Solid Fertilizer Grade Ammonium Nitrate From the Russian Federation and Notice of Antidumping Duty Order, 76 FR 23569, 23570 (April 27, 2011).