Melamine From Germany: Preliminary Affirmative Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

This preliminary determination is made in accordance with section 733(b) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act). Commerce published the notice of initiation of this investigation on March 11, 2024. On June 18, 2024, Commerce postponed the preliminary determination of this investigation. On July 22, 2024, Commerce tolled certain deadlines in this administrative proceeding by seven days. The deadline for the final results is now September 18, 2024.

For a complete description of the events that followed the initiation of this investigation, see the Preliminary Decision Memorandum. A list of topics included 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 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.

Scope of the Investigation

The product covered by this investigation is melamine from Germany. For a full description of the scope of this investigation, see Appendix I.

Scope Comments

In accordance with the Preamble to Commerce's regulations, we set aside a period of time, as stated in the Initiation Notice, for parties to raise issues regarding product coverage ( i.e., scope). No interested party commented on the scope of the investigation as it appeared in the Initiation Notice. Commerce is not modifying the scope language as it appeared in the Initiation Notice. See the complete description of the scope in Appendix I to this notice.

Methodology

Commerce is conducting this investigation in accordance with section 731 of the Act. Pursuant to section 776(a) of the Act, Commerce has preliminarily relied upon facts otherwise available to assign estimated weighted-average dumping margins to LAT Nitrogen Piesteritz GmbH, the sole mandatory respondent in this investigation because LAT Nitrogen Piesteritz GmbH did not submit a response to Commerce's antidumping duty questionnaire. Further, Commerce preliminarily determines that LAT Nitrogen Piesteritz GmbH failed to cooperate by not acting to the best of its ability to comply with a request for information and is using an adverse inference in selecting from among the facts otherwise available ( i.e., applying adverse facts available (AFA)) to this respondent, in accordance with section 776(b) of the Act. For a full description of the methodology underlying our preliminary determination, see the Preliminary Decision Memorandum.

All-Others Rate

Section 733(d)(1)(ii) of the Act provides that, in the preliminary determination, Commerce shall determine an estimated all-others rate for all exporters and producers not individually investigated in accordance with section 735(c)(5) of the Act. Section 735(c)(5)(A) of the Act states that generally the estimated rate for all others shall be an amount equal to the weighted average of the estimated weighted-average dumping margins established for exporters and producers individually investigated, excluding any zero and de minimis margins, and any margins determined entirely under section 776 of the Act. The estimated weighted-average dumping margins in this preliminary determination were calculated entirely under section 776 of the Act. In cases where no weighted-average dumping margins other than zero, de minimis, or those determined entirely under section 776 of the Act have been established for individually examined entities, in accordance with section 735(c)(5)(B) of the Act, Commerce typically calculates a simple average of the margins alleged in the petition and applies the results to all other entities not individually examined.

In the Petition, Cornerstone Chemical Company (the petitioner) calculated two estimated dumping margins, 139.74 and 218.73 percent. Therefore, consistent with our practice, for the all-others rate in this investigation, we preliminarily assigned a simple average of the dumping margins alleged in the Petition, which is 179.24 percent.

Preliminary Determination

Commerce preliminarily determines that the following estimated weighted-average dumping margins exist during the period January 1, 2023, through December 31, 2023: