<NOTICE>
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
<SUBAGY>International Trade Administration</SUBAGY>
<DEPDOC>[C-518-002]</DEPDOC>
<SUBJECT>Melamine From Qatar: Final Affirmative Countervailing Duty Determination and Final Negative Critical Circumstances Determination</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) determines that countervailable subsidies are being provided to producers and exporters of melamine from Qatar. The period of investigation (POI) is January 1, 2023, through December 31, 2023.
</SUM>
<DATES>
<HD SOURCE="HED">DATES:</HD>
Applicable December 9, 2024.
</DATES>
<FURINF>
<HD SOURCE="HED">FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:</HD>
Samantha Kinney and Sofia Pedrelli, AD/CVD Operations, Office II, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-2285 and (202)-482-4310, respectively.
</FURINF>
<SUPLINF>
<HD SOURCE="HED">SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:</HD>
<HD SOURCE="HD1">Background</HD>
On July 22, 2024, Commerce published in the
<E T="04">Federal Register</E>
its preliminary determination in the countervailing duty (CVD) investigation of melamine from Qatar and invited interested parties to comment.
<SU>1</SU>
<FTREF/>
In the
<E T="03">Preliminary Determination,</E>
and in accordance with section 705(a)(1) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act), and 19 CFR 351.210(b)(4), Commerce aligned the final CVD determination with the final antidumping duty determination of melamine from Qater.
<SU>2</SU>
<FTREF/>
On July 22, 2024, Commerce tolled certain deadlines in this administrative proceeding by seven days.
<SU>3</SU>
<FTREF/>
The deadline for the final determination is now December 2, 2024. On September 12, 2024, Commerce released its Post-Preliminary Decision.
<SU>4</SU>
<FTREF/>
<FTNT>
<SU>1</SU>
<E T="03">See Melamine from Qatar: Preliminary Affirmative Countervailable Duty Determination, Preliminary Negative Determination of Critical Circumstances, and Alignment of Final Determination With the Final Antidumping Duty Determination,</E>
89 FR 59045 (July 22, 2024) (
<E T="03">Preliminary Determination</E>
), and accompanying Preliminary Decision Memorandum (PDM).
</FTNT>
<FTNT>
<SU>2</SU>
<E T="03">See Preliminary Determination,</E>
89 FR 59046.
</FTNT>
<FTNT>
<SU>3</SU>
<E T="03">See</E>
Memorandum, “Tolling of Deadlines for Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Proceedings,” dated July 22, 2024.
</FTNT>
<FTNT>
<SU>4</SU>
<E T="03">See</E>
Memorandum, “Post Preliminary Analysis Memorandum for the Countervailing Duty Investigation of Melamine from Qatar,” dated September 12, 2024 (Post-Preliminary Analysis Memorandum).
</FTNT>
For a complete description of the events that followed the
<E T="03">Preliminary Determination, see</E>
the Issues and Decision Memorandum.
<SU>5</SU>
<FTREF/>
The Issues and 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
<E T="03">https://access.trade.gov.</E>
In addition, a complete version of the Issues and Decision Memorandum can be accessed directly at
<E T="03">https://access.trade.gov/public/FRNoticesListLayout.aspx.</E>
<FTNT>
<SU>5</SU>
<E T="03">See</E>
Memorandum, “Issues and Decision Memorandum for the Final Affirmative Determination of the Countervailing Duty Investigation of Melamine from Qatar,” dated concurrently with, and hereby adopted by, this notice (Issues and Decision Memorandum).
</FTNT>
<HD SOURCE="HD1">Scope of the Investigation</HD>
The product covered by this investigation is melamine from Qatar. For a complete description of the scope of the investigation,
<E T="03">see</E>
Appendix I.
<HD SOURCE="HD1">Scope Comments</HD>
We received no comments from interested parties on the scope of the investigation as it appeared in the
<E T="03">Preliminary Determination.</E>
Therefore, we made no changes to the scope of the investigation.
<HD SOURCE="HD1">Verification</HD>
As provided in section 782(i) of the Act, in September 2024, Commerce verified all information reported by Qatar Melamine Company (QMC), Qatar Chemical and Petrochemical Marketing and Distribution Company (Muntajat) Q.P.J.S.C (Muntajat), and its cross-owned affiliates, QAFCO, Industries Qatar, and QatarEnergy (collectively, QMC/Muntajat),
<SU>6</SU>
<FTREF/>
and the Government of Qatar (GOQ). We used standard verification procedures, including an examination of relevant account records and original source documents provided by QMC/Muntajat.
<SU>7</SU>
<FTREF/>
<FTNT>
<SU>6</SU>
Commerce continues to determine that QMC is cross owned with Muntajat, Qatar Fertiliser Company (P.S.C.) (QAFCO), Industries Qatar Q.P.S.C. (Industries Qatar) and QatarEnergy.
<E T="03">See Preliminary Determination</E>
PDM at 7-9;
<E T="03">see also</E>
Post-Preliminary Analysis Memorandum at 3.
</FTNT>
<FTNT>
<SU>7</SU>
<E T="03">See</E>
Memoranda, “Verification of the Questionnaire Responses of Qatar Melamine Company and Muntajat,” dated October 30, 2024; and “Verification of the Questionnaire Responses of the Government of Qatar,” dated October 30, 2024.
</FTNT>
<HD SOURCE="HD1">Analysis of Subsidy Programs and Comments Received</HD>
The subsidy programs under investigation, and the issues raised in the case and rebuttal briefs by interested parties in this investigation, are discussed in the Issues and Decision Memorandum. For a list of the issues raised by parties, and to which we responded in the Issues and Decision Memorandum,
<E T="03">see</E>
Appendix II.
<HD SOURCE="HD1">Methodology</HD>
Commerce conducted this investigation in accordance with section 701 of the Act. For each of the subsidy programs found to be countervailable, Commerce determines that there is a subsidy,
<E T="03">i.e.,</E>
a financial contribution by an “authority” that gives rise to a benefit to the recipient, and that the subsidy is specific.
<SU>8</SU>
<FTREF/>
Commerce notes that, in making these findings, it relied, in part, on facts available and, because it finds that QMC/Muntajat did not act to the best of its ability to respond to Commerce's requests for information, Commerce drew an adverse inference where appropriate in selecting from among the facts otherwise available.
<SU>9</SU>
<FTREF/>
For further information,
<E T="03">see</E>
the “Use of Facts Otherwise Available and Adverse Inferences” section in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum. For a full description of the methodology underlying our final determination,
<E T="03">see</E>
the Issues and Decision Memorandum.
<FTNT>
<SU>8</SU>
<E T="03">See</E>
sections 771(5)(B) and (D) of the Act regarding financial contribution; section 771(5)(E) of the Act regarding benefit; and section 771(5A) of the Act regarding specificity.
</FTNT>
<FTNT>
<SU>9</SU>
<E T="03">See</E>
sections 776(a) and (b) of the Act.
</FTNT>
<HD SOURCE="HD1">Final Negative Determination of Critical Circumstances</HD>
Commerce determines that critical circumstances do not exist within the meaning of 703(e)(1) of the Act. For further information,
<E T="03">see</E>
the Issues and Decision Memorandum.
<HD SOURCE="HD1">Changes Since the Preliminary Determination and Post-Preliminary Analysis</HD>
Based on our review and analysis of the information received during verification and comments received from interested parties, for this final determination, we made certain changes to the countervailable subsidy rate calculations for QMC/Muntajat, and for all other producers/exporters. For a discussion of these changes,
<E T="03">see</E>
the Issues and Decision Memorandum.
<HD SOURCE="HD1">All-Others Rate</HD>
In accordance with section 705(c)(1)(B)(i) of the Act, we calculated an individual estimated countervailable subsidy rate for the mandatory respondent, QMC/Muntajat. Section 705(c)(5)(A)(i) of the Act states that, for companies not individually investigated, Commerce will determine an all-others rate equal to the weighted-average countervailable subsidy rates established for exporters and/or producers individually investigated, excluding any zero and
<E T="03">de minimis</E>
countervailable subsidy rates, and any rates determined entirely under section 776 of the Act.
In this investigation, we continue to calculate an individual total net countervailable subsidy rate for QMC/Muntajat that is not zero,
<E T="03">de minimis,</E>
or based entirely on facts otherwise available. Because QMC/Muntajat's individual total net countervailable subsidy rate is the only rate calculated in this investigation, the all-others rate is the individual estimated subsidy rate calculated for the examined respondent (QMC/Muntajat), in accordance with section 705(c)(5)(A)(i) of the Act.
<HD SOURCE="HD1">Final Determination</HD>
Commerce determines that the following estimated net countervailable subsidy rates exist for the period January 1, 2023, through December 31, 2023:
<GPOTABLE COLS="2" OPTS="L2,tp0,i1" CDEF="s150,12">
<TTITLE> </TTITLE>
<CHED H="1">Company</CHED>
<CHED H="1">
Subsidy
rate
(percent
<E T="03">ad valorem</E>
<ENT I="01">Qatar Melamine Company; Qatar Chemical and Petrochemical Marketing and Distribution Company (Muntajat) Q.P.J.S.C.; Qatar Fertiliser Company (P.S.C.); Industries Qatar Q.P.S.C.; QatarEnergy</ENT>
<ENT>41.91</ENT>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<ENT I="01">All Others</ENT>
<ENT>41.91</ENT>
</ROW>
</GPOTABLE>
<HD SOURCE="HD1">Disclosure</HD>
Commerce intends to disclose its
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