2018-16563. Certain Frozen Warmwater Shrimp From India: Initiation and Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Changed Circumstances Review

AGENCY:

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

SUMMARY:

The Department of Commerce (Commerce) is initiating a changed circumstances review and preliminarily determining that Coastal Aqua Private Limited (CAPL) is the successor-in-interest to Coastal Aqua in the context of the antidumping duty order on certain frozen warmwater shrimp (shrimp) from India.

DATES:

Applicable August 2, 2018.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Brittany Bauer, AD/CVD Operations, Office II, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone: [phone].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:.

Background

On February 1, 2005, Commerce published in the Federal Register an antidumping duty order on shrimp from India.^[1] On June 13, 2018, CAPL requested that, pursuant to section 751(b)(1) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act) and 19 CFR 351.216(b), Commerce conduct an expedited changed circumstances review of the Order to confirm that CAPL is the successor-in-interest to Coastal Aqua and, accordingly, to assign it the cash deposit rate of Coastal Aqua.^[2] In its submission, CAPL explained that Coastal Aqua undertook a business reorganization and transferred its shrimp business to CAPL.^[3] The domestic industry did not file any comments on this request.

Scope of the Order

The merchandise subject to the order is certain frozen warmwater shrimp.^[4] The product is currently classified under the following Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) item numbers: 0306.17.00.03, 0306.17.00.06, 0306.17.00.09, 0306.17.00.12, 0306.17.00.15, 0306.17.00.18, 0306.17.00.21, 0306.17.00.24, 0306.17.00.27, 0306.17.00.40, 1605.21.10.30, and 1605.29.10.10. Although the HTSUS numbers are provided for convenience and customs purposes, the written product description remains dispositive.

Initiation and Preliminary Results

Pursuant to section 751(b)(1) of the Act, Commerce will conduct a changed circumstances review upon receipt of information concerning, or a request from, an interested party for a review of an antidumping duty order which shows changed circumstances sufficient to warrant a review of the order. As indicated in the “Background” section, we received information indicating that Coastal Aqua transferred its shrimp business to CAPL. This constitutes changed circumstances warranting a review of the order.^[5] Therefore, in accordance with section 751(b)(1) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.216(d) and (e), we are initiating a changed circumstances review based upon the information contained in CAPL's submission.

Section 351.221(c)(3)(ii) of Commerce's regulations permits Commerce to combine the notice of initiation of a changed circumstances review and the notice of preliminary results if Commerce concludes that expedited action is warranted.^[6] In this instance, because the record contains information necessary to make a preliminary finding, we find that expedited action is warranted and have combined the notice of initiation and the notice of preliminary results.^[7]

In this changed circumstances review, pursuant to section 751(b) of the Act, Commerce conducted a successor-in-interest analysis. In making a successor-in-interest determination, Commerce examines several factors, including, but not limited to, changes in the following: (1) Management; (2) production facilities; (3) supplier relationships; and (4) customer base.^[8] While no single factor or combination of factors will necessarily provide a dispositive indication of a successor-in-interest relationship, generally, Commerce will consider the new company to be the successor to the previous company if the new company's resulting operation is not materially dissimilar to that of its predecessor.^[9] Thus, if the record 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 predecessor company, Commerce may assign the new company the cash deposit rate of its predecessor.^[10]

In accordance with 19 CFR 351.216, we preliminarily determine that CAPL is the successor-in-interest to Coastal Aqua. Record evidence, as submitted by CAPL, indicates that CAPL operates as essentially the same business entity as Coastal Aqua with respect to the subject merchandise.^[11] For the complete successor-in-interest analysis, including discussion of business proprietary information, refer to the accompanying successor-in-interest memorandum.^[12]

Public Comment

Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.310(c), any interested party may request a hearing within 30 days of publication of this notice. In accordance with 19 CFR 351.309(c)(1)(ii), interested parties may submit case briefs not later than 30 days after the date of publication of this notice. Rebuttal briefs, limited to issues raised in the case briefs, may be filed no later than five days after the case briefs, in accordance with 19 CFR 351.309(d). Parties who submit case or rebuttal briefs 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.^[13] All comments are to be filed electronically using Enforcement and Compliance's Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Centralized Electronic Service System (ACCESS) available to registered users at https://access.trade.gov and in the Central Records Unit, Room B8024 of the main Department of Commerce building, 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.^[14]

Consistent with 19 CFR 351.216(e), we will issue the final results of this changed circumstances review no later than 270 days after the date on which this review was initiated, or within 45 days if all parties agree to our preliminary finding. This notice is published in accordance with sections 751(b)(1) and 777(i) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.216(b), 351.221(b) and 351.221(c)(3).

Dated: July 26, 2018.

Gary Taverman,

Deputy Assistant Secretary for Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Operations, performing the non-exclusive duties and functions of the Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance.

Footnotes

1.  See Notice of Amended Final Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value and Antidumping Duty Order: Certain Frozen Warmwater Shrimp from India, 70 FR 5147 (February 1, 2005) (Order).

2.  See CAPL's Letter re: Certain Frozen Warmwater Shrimp form India: Request to Initiate a Successor-in-Interest Changed Circumstances Review for Coastal Aqua Private Limited, dated June 13, 2018 (CAPL CCR Request).

3.  Id. at 1.

4.  For a complete description of the Scope of the Order, see 12th AR, and accompanying Issues and Decision Memorandum at “Scope of the Order.”

5.  See 19 CFR 351.216(d).

6.  See 19 CFR 351.221(c)(3)(ii). See also Certain Pasta from Italy: Initiation and Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Changed Circumstances Review, 80 FR 33480, 33480-41 (June 12, 2015) (Pasta from Italy Preliminary Results) (unchanged in Certain Pasta from Italy: Final Results of Changed Circumstances Review, 80 FR 48807 (August 14, 2015) (Pasta from Italy Final Results).

7.  See, e.g., Pasta from Italy Preliminary Results, 80 FR at 33480-41 (unchanged in Pasta from Italy Final Results, 80 FR at 48807).

8.  See, e.g., Certain Frozen Warmwater Shrimp from India: Initiation and Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Changed Circumstances Review, 81 FR 75376 (October 31, 2016) (Shrimp from India Preliminary Results) (unchanged in Certain Frozen Warmwater Shrimp from India: Notice of Final Results of Antidumping Duty Changed Circumstances Review, 81 FR 90774 (December 15, 2016) (Shrimp from India Final Results))

9.  See, e.g., Shrimp from India Preliminary Results, 81 FR at 75377 (unchanged in Shrimp from India Final Results, 81 FR at 90774).

10.  Id.; see also Notice of Final Results of Changed Circumstances Antidumping Duty Administrative Review: Polychloroprene Rubber from Japan, 67 FR 58, 59 (January 2, 2002); Ball Bearings and Parts Thereof from France: Final Results of Changed-Circumstances Review, 75 FR 34688, 34689 (June 18, 2010); and Circular Welded Non-Alloy Steel Pipe from the Republic of Korea; Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Changed Circumstances Review, 63 FR 14679 (March 26, 1998), unchanged in Circular Welded Non-Alloy Steel Pipe from Korea; Final Results of Antidumping Duty Changed Circumstances Review, 63 FR 20572 (April 27, 1998), in which Commerce found that a company which only changed its name and did not change its operations is a successor-in-interest to the company before it changed its name.

11.  See CAPL CCR Request.

12.  See Memorandum, “Certain Frozen Warmwater Shrimp from India: Initiation and Preliminary Results of Changed Circumstances Review,” dated concurrently with this notice.

13.  See 19 CFR 351.309(c)(2).

14.  See 19 CFR 351.303(b).