Certain Frozen Warmwater Shrimp From India: Notice of Initiation and Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Changed Circumstances Review

<NOTICE> DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE <SUBAGY>International Trade Administration</SUBAGY> <DEPDOC>[A-533-840]</DEPDOC> <SUBJECT>Certain Frozen Warmwater Shrimp From India: Notice of Initiation and Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Changed Circumstances Review</SUBJECT> <HD SOURCE="HED">AGENCY:</HD> Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, Department of Commerce. <SUM> <HD SOURCE="HED">SUMMARY:</HD> The U.S. Department of Commerce (Commerce) is initiating a changed circumstances review (CCR) to determine if Varma Marine Private Limited (Varma) is the successor-in-interest to Varma Marine in the context of the antidumping duty (AD) order on certain frozen warmwater shrimp (shrimp) from India. We preliminarily determine that Varma is the successor-in-interest to Varma Marine. </SUM> <DATES> <HD SOURCE="HED">DATES:</HD> Applicable May 13, 2024. </DATES> <FURINF> <HD SOURCE="HED">FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:</HD> Whitley Herndon, AD/CVD Operations, Office IX, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-6274. </FURINF> <SUPLINF> <HD SOURCE="HED">SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:</HD> <HD SOURCE="HD1">Background</HD> On February 1, 2005, Commerce published in the <E T="04">Federal Register</E> the order on shrimp from India. <SU>1</SU> <FTREF/> On March 19, 2024, Varma requested that, pursuant to section 751(b)(1) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act), 19 CFR 351.216, and 19 CFR 351.221(c)(3), Commerce conduct an expedited CCR  <SU>2</SU> <FTREF/> to determine that Varma is the successor-in-interest to Varma Marine and, accordingly, assign to it the cash deposit rate for Varma Marine. <SU>3</SU> <FTREF/> In its submission, Varma stated that, in 2023, Varma and Varma Marine signed a takeover agreement to transfer all of Varma Marine's assets and liabilities to Varma. <SU>4</SU> <FTREF/> Thus, Varma operates as essentially the same business entity as Varma Marine with respect to the production and sale of subject merchandise. <FTNT> <SU>1</SU>   <E T="03">See Notice of Amended Final Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value and Antidumping Duty Order: Certain Frozen Warmwater Shrimp from India,</E> 70 FR 5147 (February 1, 2005) ( <E T="03">Order</E> ). </FTNT> <FTNT> <SU>2</SU>   <E T="03">See</E> Varma's Letter, “Varma Marine Private Limited's Request for a Changed Circumstances Review in Certain Frozen Warmwater Shrimp from India, Case No. A-533-840,” dated March 19, 2024 (Varma's CCR Request). </FTNT> <FTNT> <SU>3</SU>  In the 2021-2022 review, the last completed segment of this proceeding which covered Varma Marine, Commerce assigned Varma Marine a cash deposit rate of 3.88 percent. <E T="03">See Certain Frozen Warmwater Shrimp from India: Final Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review; 2021-2022,</E> 88 FR 60431 (September 1, 2023). </FTNT> <FTNT> <SU>4</SU>   <E T="03">See</E> Varma's CCR Request. </FTNT> <HD SOURCE="HD1">Scope of the Order</HD> The merchandise subject to the order is certain frozen warmwater shrimp. For a complete description of the scope of the <E T="03">Order, see</E> the Preliminary Decision Memorandum. <SU>5</SU> <FTREF/> <FTNT> <SU>5</SU>   <E T="03">See</E> Memorandum, “Decision Memorandum for the Preliminary Results of Changed Circumstances Review; Certain Frozen Warmwater Shrimp from India,” dated concurrently with, and hereby adopted by, this notice (Preliminary Decision Memorandum). </FTNT> <HD SOURCE="HD1">Initiation and Preliminary Results of CCR</HD> Pursuant to section 751(b)(1)(A) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.216(d), Commerce will conduct a CCR upon receipt of information concerning, or a request from, an interested party for a review of an AD order which shows changed circumstances sufficient to warrant a review of the order. The information submitted by Varma supporting its claim that it is the successor-in-interest Varma Marine demonstrates changed circumstances sufficient to warrant a review. <SU>6</SU> <FTREF/> Therefore, in accordance with section 751(b)(1)(A) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.216(d), we are initiating a CCR based upon the information contained in Varma's submission. <FTNT> <SU>6</SU>   <E T="03">See</E> 19 CFR 351.216(d). </FTNT> Section 351.221(c)(3)(ii) of Commerce's regulations permits Commerce to combine the notice of initiation of a CCR and the notice of preliminary results if Commerce concludes that expedited action is warranted. <SU>7</SU> <FTREF/> 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. <SU>8</SU> <FTREF/> <FTNT> <SU>7</SU>   <E T="03">See</E> 19 CFR 351.221(c)(3)(ii); <E T="03">see also Certain Pasta from Italy: Initiation and Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Changed Circumstances Review,</E> 80 FR 33480, 33480-41 (June 12, 2015) ( <E T="03">Pasta from Italy Preliminary Results</E> ), unchanged in <E T="03">Certain Pasta from Italy: Final Results of Changed Circumstances Review,</E> 80 FR 48807 (August 14, 2015) ( <E T="03">Pasta from Italy Final Results</E> ). </FTNT> <FTNT> <SU>8</SU>   <E T="03">See, e.g., Pasta from Italy Preliminary Results,</E> 80 FR at 33480-41, unchanged in <E T="03">Pasta from Italy Final Results,</E> 80 FR at 48807. </FTNT> In this CCR, 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. <SU>9</SU> <FTREF/> 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. <SU>10</SU> <FTREF/> 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. <SU>11</SU> <FTREF/> <FTNT> <SU>9</SU>   <E T="03">See, e.g., Certain Frozen Warmwater Shrimp from India: Initiation and Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Changed Circumstances Review,</E> 81 FR 75376 (October 31, 2016) ( <E T="03">Shrimp from India 2016 CCR Preliminary Results</E> ), unchanged in <E T="03">Certain Frozen Warmwater Shrimp from India: Notice of Final Results of Antidumping Duty Changed Circumstances Review,</E> 81 FR 90774 (December 15, 2016) ( <E T="03">Shrimp from India 2016 CCR Final Results</E> ). </FTNT> <FTNT> <SU>10</SU>   <E T="03">See, e.g., Shrimp from India 2016 CCR Preliminary Results,</E> 81 FR at 75377, unchanged in <E T="03">Shrimp from India 2016 CCR Final Results,</E> 81 FR at 90774. </FTNT> <FTNT> <SU>11</SU>   <E T="03">Id.; see also Notice of Final Results of Changed Circumstances Antidumping Duty Administrative Review: Polychloroprene Rubber from Japan,</E> 67 FR 58, 59 (January 2, 2002); <E T="03">Ball Bearings and Parts Thereof from France: Final Results of Changed-Circumstances Review,</E> 75 FR 34688, 34689 (June 18, 2010); and <E T="03">Circular Welded Non-Alloy Steel Pipe from the Republic of Korea; Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Changed Circumstances Review,</E> 63 FR 14679 (March 26, 1998), unchanged in <E T="03">Circular Welded Non-Alloy Steel Pipe from Korea; Final Results of Antidumping Duty Changed Circumstances Review,</E> 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. </FTNT> In accordance with 19 CFR 351.216, we preliminarily determine that Varma is the successor-in-interest to Varma Marine. Varma submitted record evidence which indicates that Varma operates as essentially the same business entity as Varma Marine with respect to the subject merchandise. <SU>12</SU> <FTREF/> <FTNT> <SU>12</SU>   <E T="03">See</E> Varma's CCR Request. </FTNT> For the complete successor-in-interest analysis, refer to the accompanying Preliminary Decision Memorandum. A list of the topics discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum is included as an appendix to this notice. The Preliminary Decision Memorandum is a public document and is made available to the public via Enforcement and Compliance's Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Centralized Electronic Service System (ACCESS). ACCESS is available to registered users at <E T="03">https://access.trade.gov</E> . In addition, a complete version of the Preliminary Decision Memorandum is available at <E T="03">https://access.trade.gov/public/FRNoticesListLayout.aspx</E> . <HD SOURCE="HD1">Public Comment</HD> 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 date for filing case briefs, in accordance with 19 CFR 351.309(d)(1). Interested parties who submit case briefs or rebuttal briefs in this proceeding must submit: (1) a table of contents listing each issue; and (2) a table of authorities. <SU>13</SU> <FTREF/> All briefs must be filed electronically using A ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ Preview showing 10k of 13k characters. 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