[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 232 (Tuesday, December 4, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 68124-68127]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-23490]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
[A-821-802]
Initialed Draft Amendment to the Agreement Suspending the
Antidumping Investigation on Uranium From the Russian Federation;
Request for Comment
AGENCY: Import Administration, International Trade Administration,
Department of Commerce.
SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce (``the Department'') and the
Russian Federation's Federal Atomic Energy Agency (``Rosatom'') have
initialed a draft amendment to the Agreement Suspending the Antidumping
Investigation on Uranium from the Russian Federation (``Suspension
Agreement''). The proposed amendment will allow the Russian Federation
(``Russia'') to export Russian uranium products to the U.S. market in
accordance with the export limits and other terms detailed in the
amendment. The Department is now inviting interested parties to comment
on the text of the proposed amendment.
DATES: Comments must be submitted within thirty (30) days from the
publication of this notice.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sally C. Gannon at (202) 482-0162,
Import Administration, International Trade Administration, U.S.
Department of Commerce, 14th Street and Constitution Avenue, NW.,
Washington, DC 20230.
Background
On October 30, 1992, the Department suspended the antidumping duty
investigation involving uranium from Russia on the basis of an
agreement by its government to restrict the volume of direct or
indirect exports to the United States in order to prevent the
suppression or undercutting of price levels of U.S. domestic uranium.
See Antidumping; Uranium from
[[Page 68125]]
Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan;
Suspension of Investigations and Amendment of Preliminary
Determinations, 57 FR 49220 (October 30, 1992).
The Suspension Agreement was subsequently amended, by agreement of
both governments, on March 11, 1994, October 3, 1996, and May 7, 1997.
See, respectively, Amendment to Agreement Suspending the Antidumping
Investigation on Uranium from the Russian Federation, 59 FR 15373
(April 1, 1994); Amendments to the Agreement Suspending the Antidumping
Investigation on Uranium from the Russian Federation, 61 FR 56665
(November 4, 1996); and Amendment to Agreement Suspending the
Antidumping Investigation on Uranium from the Russian Federation, 62 FR
37879 (July 15, 1997). On July 31, 1998, the Department notified
interested parties of an administrative change with respect to the
Suspension Agreement. See Agreement Suspending the Antidumping
Investigation on Uranium from the Russian Federation, 63 FR 40879 (July
31, 1998).
Initialed Amendment
On November 27, 2007, the Department and Rosatom initialed a new
draft amendment to the Suspension Agreement. The proposed amendment
allows for exports of Russian uranium products to the U.S. market in
accordance with the export limits and other terms detailed in the
amendment. The text of the draft amendment follows in Annex 1 to this
notice.
The Department invites interested parties to submit comments on the
proposed amendment within 30 days of the publication date of this
notice. Persons wishing to comment should file a signed original and
six copies, by the dates specified above, addressed as follows:
Assistant Secretary David M. Spooner, Import Administration,
International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, c/o
Central Records Unit, Room 1874, Washington, DC 20230, Attn: Sally C.
Gannon, Bilateral Agreements Unit, Room 4083.
All information provided to the Department will be subject to
release under Administrative Protective Order (``APO'') and should be
submitted in accordance with 19 CFR 351.103 and 19 CFR 351.105 of the
Department's regulations, including the service of copies of comments
on interested parties to this proceeding. The APO and public service
lists in this proceeding can be found at the following Web site
address: http://ia.ita.doc.gov/apo/apo-svc-lists.html. The Department
will consider all comments received by the close of the comment period.
Dated: November 28, 2007.
David M. Spooner,
Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.
Annex 1
November 20, 2007--Draft (Moscow)
Amendment to the Agreement Suspending the Antidumping Investigation on
Uranium From the Russian Federation
Date
The Agreement Suspending the Antidumping Investigation on Uranium
from the Russian Federation is amended as set forth below.
The Preamble is amended by deleting the last two paragraphs (which
were added to the Agreement in 1994) and adding the following paragraph
to the end:
The Department and ROSATOM acknowledge that, for purposes of the
Agreement, as amended (the ``Agreement''), the successor in interest to
MINATOM is the Federal Atomic Energy Agency (``ROSATOM''). All
references to MINATOM in this Agreement shall be understood to indicate
ROSATOM. All exports of Russian Uranium Products are executed through
the Russian Government-Owned entity Techsnabexport (``TENEX''). All
references to TENEX include its successors and its affiliated
companies. All references to ``Customs'' shall be understood to
indicate United States Customs and Border Protection.
Section II.--Definitions--is amended by deleting definitions (g)
``U.S. producer,'' (h) ``for consumption,'' (i) ``End-user,'' (j)
``Spot Contract,'' and (k) ``Newly-produced,'' and by adding the
following definitions:
(l) ``Russian Uranium Products'' means all products described in
Section III, Product Coverage, of the Agreement.
(m) ``Low-Enriched Uranium'' (``LEU'') means uranium of which the
content of the fissile isotope uranium-235 has been increased through
enrichment to more than 0.7 percent, but less than 20 percent, by
weight.
(n) ``Initial Core'' means the LEU necessary to start a U.S.
nuclear reactor that is entering service for the first time.
(o) ``Effective Date'' means the date on which this amendment is
signed by both parties.
(p) ``Year'' or ``Relevant Period'' means ``Calendar Year''.
Section IV.--Export Limits--The following new paragraphs are added
at the beginning of this Section. The status of the other provisions of
Section IV is set forth in Appendix 1.
A. Beginning on the Effective Date, TENEX may immediately enter
into contracts for the sale of Russian Uranium Products in the United
States, directly to U.S. utilities or otherwise.
B. Beginning in 2011, Russian Uranium Products in any form may be
exported to the United States up to the limits set forth below. These
limits are expressed in KgU as LEU, at a product assay of 4.4 and a
tails assay of 0.3 percent. The Department and ROSATOM will consult and
agree within two months after the Effective Date on how to convert and
apply against these export limits Russian Uranium Products, which are
other than LEU. Russian Uranium Products exported to the United States
will be counted against these export limits, employing the formula in
Section II(a), where necessary.
1. The annual export limits are as follows:
2011--16,559
2012--24,839
2013--41,398
2014--485,279
2015--455,142
2016--480,146
2017--490,710
2018--492,731
2019--509,058
2020--514,754
These limits were derived from the reference data in the World
Nuclear Association's 2005 ``Global Nuclear Fuel Market Supply and
Demand 2005-2030.'' The Department shall adjust these export limits in
2016 and 2019 to match the projected reactor demand for subsequent
years in that publication or its successor, and also to increase the
total export limit for the remaining years by the net amount by which
the export limits for previous years have fallen short of the export
limits that would have been derived from the revised demand figures for
those years, with any additional export allowances being divided
equally between the revised export limits for the remaining years.
Russian Uranium Products may be exported to the United States under a
contract entered into after the Effective Date and approved by the
Department under this Agreement, even if such exports exceed the export
limits in effect at the time of delivery.
2. After the Effective Date, Russian Uranium Products may be sold
in, and exported to, the United States to fulfill contracts for the
supply of Initial Cores without being subject to the export limits in
this Agreement.
3. After the Effective Date, LEU in the United States pursuant to
the contracts
[[Page 68126]]
described in Appendix C to the Agreement, and stored as of the
Effective Date at the facilities of U.S. producers (i.e., the EUP
stockpile), may be sold in the United States or exported from the
United States without being subject to the export limits in this
Agreement, provided such sales occur prior to January 1, 2014. Any
amount sold after December 31, 2013, shall be charged against the
export limit for the year in which it is sold or the first subsequent
year in which the export limit has not been reached.
4. After the Effective Date, Russian Uranium Products may be
imported for processing and certified for re-export pursuant to
Sections IV. G and H, without being subject to the export limits in
Section IV.B.1.
C. If, at any time, the Department determines that the available
supply of Russian Uranium Products is or will be insufficient to meet
U.S. demand, the Department may increase the export limits in this
Agreement.
D. Except for any increase added pursuant to Section IV.C, if, in
any year, the Department permits any Russian Uranium Products to enter
the United States in excess of the export limit for that year, the
amount of the excess shall be charged against the export limit for the
first subsequent year in which the export limit has not been
contractually obligated. If the amount entered in any year falls below
the export limit for that year, the amount of the shortfall may be
added to the export limit for the subsequent year, up to 10 percent of
the export limit for the year in which the shortfall occurs.
E. In negotiating contracts involving the export of Russian Uranium
Products to the United States, ROSATOM/TENEX shall charge market rates
for conversion.
F. The Russian LEU in reactor fuel rods or assemblies exported to
the United States shall be counted against the export limits in this
Agreement. ROSATOM/TENEX shall charge market rates for fuel rods and
assemblies themselves.
The following sentence is added at the end of the sixth paragraph
of Section IV.H., which begins ``For re-export entered under the 36
month limitation* * *'':
The Department of Commerce shall instruct Customs to liquidate such
entries as promptly as possible, and in all cases within ten (10) days
of receiving confirmation of the re-export shipment out of the United
States. If the Department does not issue such instruction to Customs
within ten (10) days of receiving confirmation of the re-export
shipment out of the United States, on the next business day, the
Department shall provide ROSATOM with a written explanation of the
exact and specific reason(s) for the delay and a date certain by which
the Department shall issue instructions to Customs to liquidate the
entries. The Department shall provide notice of re-export of any such
uranium to TENEX.
N. Russian Uranium Products sold pursuant to a multi-year contract
entered into after the Effective Date and approved by the Department
may be delivered in accordance with the provisions of this Amendment
regardless of any modification to or reduction in the quantity that may
be delivered under the export limits or any modification to or any
interruption in the effectiveness of, including termination of, this
Agreement.
Section V.--Export License/Certificates--is amended by replacing
paragraphs B and C with the paragraphs below and adding new paragraph F
as follows:
B. Export licenses shall be issued, and export certificates shall
be endorsed by the competent Russian Government authority, for all
direct and indirect exports of Russian Uranium Products to the United
States. Such export certificates shall remain valid for entry into the
United States for 120 days from the Date of Export.
C. Russian Uranium Products may enter the United States if: (1)
They were sold pursuant to a contract approved by the Department under
this Agreement; (2) are accompanied by (a) a valid export license and
certificate and (b) a valid purchase and/or delivery order issued in
accordance with the contract approved by the Department under this
Agreement showing the specific product and tails assays, as applicable;
and (3) do not exceed the export limits in Section IV.
F. Any contract, or amendment thereto, for the sale of Russian
Uranium Products for exportation to the United States shall be
submitted to the Department for approval, along with the documents
listed in Appendix 2 to this Amendment. If the maximum quantities to be
exported under a contract, when cumulated with the maximum quantities
that may be exported under all other approved contracts, are not in
excess of the export limits under this Agreement, and the information
listed in Appendix 2 has been submitted to the Department, the
Department shall approve the contract within 15 days (or the next
business day if the 15th day falls on a weekend or holiday).
Section VII.--Anticircumvention--is amended by replacing Section
VII.D with new paragraph D and adding new paragraph J as follows:
D. In addition to the above requirements, the Department shall
direct Customs to require all importers of uranium products into the
United States, regardless of stated country of origin, to submit at the
time of entry written statements certifying the following:
1. The country(ies) in which the ore was mined and, if applicable,
converted, enriched, and/or fabricated, for all imports; and
2. That the uranium products being imported were not obtained under
any arrangement, swap, exchange, or other transaction designed to
circumvent the export limits established by the Agreement, or the
limitations set forth in 43 U.S.C. 2297h-10(b) of the USEC
Privatization Act, 42 U.S.C. 2297h, et seq., and the Procedures for
Delivery of HEU Natural Uranium Component in the United States, as
revised. Procedures for Delivery of HEU Natural Uranium Component in
the United States, 64 FR 42930 (August 6, 1999).
J. Neither ROSATOM nor TENEX will circumvent this Agreement or
frustrate the attainment of its objectives by entering into any
contract involving the exportation to the United States of LEU in
quantities exceeding the export limits in this Agreement.
Section VIII.--Monitoring--is amended by adding the reporting
requirements listed in Appendix 3 to this Amendment.
Section XII.--Duration--is amended by replacing the first two
paragraphs with the following:
As of the Effective Date of this Amendment, each of the petitioners
in the suspended investigation, or their legal successors, has filed
with the Department an irrevocable letters expressly withdrawing the
petition in the antidumping investigation, effective December 31, 2020.
These letters are attached to this Amendment as Appendix 4. The
Agreement will terminate on December 31, 2020. Upon its termination on
December 31, 2020, the Department shall terminate the antidumping
investigation effective on that date.
The Department, before the Effective Date, acknowledges the remand
of the U.S. Court of International Trade of September 26, 2007, in
Techsnabexport v. United States, Ct. No. O6-00228, including the
Court's direction that ``Commerce follow the precedent by which it is
bound, articulated in the Eurodif cases.'' As directed by the Court of
International Trade, the Department will abide by the Eurodif decisions
in its determination of the likelihood of continued or recurring
dumping. Therefore, on the Effective Date,
[[Page 68127]]
Techsnabexport will file a motion in Techsnabexport v. United States
under Rule 41 of the U.S. Court of International Trade Rules. The
United States will not appeal the September 26th decision in
Techsnabexport v. United States.
In addition, the Department shall conduct sunset reviews under 19
U.S.C. 1675(c) in the years 2011 and 2016. All parties agree that the
sunset reviews shall be expedited, pursuant to 19 U.S.C. 1675(C)(4) and
(C)(3)(B), respectively, at both the Department of Commerce and the
International Trade Commission.
Section XIII.--Conditions--is amended by adding, before the first
paragraph, an ``A,'' and by adding the following new paragraph at the
end of Section XIII:
B. This Agreement will be applied consistent with any applicable
decision of the U.S. Courts, including the Eurodif decisions. Such
decisions shall be applied to this Agreement (including by amendment,
if necessary) no later than six (6) months after the appropriate
decision, unless the Department and ROSATOM agree otherwise.
Section XIV.--Other Provisions--is amended by replacing existing
paragraph B with the following new paragraph B, and by replacing the
second part of paragraph C with the following:
B. For all purposes relating to the Agreement, the Department and
ROSATOM shall be represented by, and all communications and notices
shall be given and addressed to:
Department Contact:
United States Department of Commerce, Assistant Secretary for
Import Administration, International Trade Administration, Washington,
DC 20230
ROSATOM Contact:
State Secretary, Deputy Director, Federal Atomic Energy Agency
(ROSATOM), Staromonetnyy per., 26, 119180, Moscow, Russian Federation
C. If U.S. law, regulation, administrative practice, or policy
should change in any manner, including by U.S. court decision or
legislative or administrative action, that would result in relatively
less favorable treatment for the Russian Federation as compared to any
other country, or if the United States should enter into any agreement
or understanding or take any action that would cause that result, the
parties will promptly, i.e., within six (6) months, enter into
consultations with a view to amending this Agreement so as to eliminate
such less favorable treatment to the extent permitted by U.S. law.
Signed on this -------- day of --------------, 2007.
For ROSATOM:
S.V. Kiriyenko
Director, Federal Atomic Energy Agency (ROSATOM)
For the United States Department of Commerce:
Carlos M. Gutierrez
U.S. Secretary of Commerce
Appendix 1
Section IV.--Export Limits--The status of the other paragraphs
of Section IV, other than the newly-added paragraphs, is as follows:
1994 matched sales provisions (IV, IV.A--IV.E)--hereby deleted
1992 Sections IV.A--IV.C.1--deleted in 1994
1992 Sections IV.C 2-3 and IV.D--hereby deleted
1992 Sections IV.E--IV.G--remain in effect
1992 Section IV.H, first two paragraphs--deleted in 1997
1997 Section H--remains in effect
1992 Sections IV.I--IV.M.1 remain in effect
1996 Section IV.M.2--remains in effect
1992 Section IV.M.2--ineffective as of 1997
Appendix 2
Pursuant to Section V.F, the following documents should
accompany any contract for the sale of Russian Uranium Products for
exportation to the United States, which is submitted to the
Department for approval:
1. A copy of the signed contract pursuant to which the Russian
Uranium Products shall be imported (showing the contract date and
key terms such as price, quantity, delivery requirements and
estimated delivery schedule);
2. A description of the physical material being imported;
3. Identification of the Russian supplier of the Russian Uranium
Products;
4. For each contract, the maximum volume of each type of Russian
Uranium Product that may be exported to the United States pursuant
to the contract each year;
5. For sales pursuant to Section IV.B.2, the documentation
necessary to demonstrate that deliveries meet the definition of
Initial Cores (e.g., a combined construction and operating license
(COL), etc.).
Appendix 3
Pursuant to Section VIII, the following additional reporting
requirements are agreed to by ROSATOM and the Department:
1. Beginning the Effective Date, no later than 30 days after the
end of each calendar quarter, to the extent permitted by Russian
law, ROSATOM shall submit an updated master export schedule to the
Department showing the following for each year (from the first year
of validity of the Amendment through 2020) for any material to be
delivered in the United States pursuant to contracts under this
Agreement: (a) Estimated deliveries, and (b) completed deliveries.
All such reports submitted by ROSATOM shall be subject to release
under Administrative Protective Order (``APO'') to counsel for
interested parties to the proceeding.
2. Beginning the Effective Date, no later than 30 days after the
end of each semi-annual period, to the extent permitted by U.S. law,
the Department shall provide semi-annual reports to ROSATOM, via its
U.S. attorney under APO, of all individual imports (for consumption
and for processing and re-export) of Russian Uranium Products to the
United States, together with such additional information as is
necessary and appropriate to monitor implementation of the
Agreement, as agreed to by the Department and ROSATOM. For every
transaction for which the Department withholds information on the
basis that its disclosure is not permitted under U.S. law, the
Department shall submit to ROSATOM the fullest description permitted
under U.S. law of the information withheld and the legal basis for
not disclosing it.
3. For purposes of the Department's reporting on imports for
consumption, to the extent permitted under U.S. law, the Department
shall provide the following:
a. Quantity: Indicate units of measure sold and/or entered,
e.g., pounds U308, Kilograms U, SWU, etc.
b. Date of Importation: The date Customs confirmed the
Department's shipment clearance instructions.
c. Date of Export: The date the Export Certificate is endorsed.
d. Export Certificate: The Export Certificate number
corresponding to each individual import.
e. Total Sales Value: Indicate currency used.
f. Importer of Record: Name and address.
4. For purposes of the Department's reporting on imports for
processing and re-export, to the extent permitted under U.S. law,
the Department shall provide the following:
a. Filing date of request for approval filed with the
Department.
b. Certificate for Re-Export number, as listed on the
Certificate for Re-Export.
c. Date of issuance by ROSATOM of the Certificate for Re-Export,
as listed on the Certificate for Re-Export.
d. Date of Export, as listed on the Certificate for Re-Export.
e. Party requesting approval, as listed on the request for
approval.
f. Customer, as listed on the Certificate for Re-Export.
g. Total quantity, expressed in KgU, U308 and, as applicable,
SWUs, as listed on the Certificate for Re-Export.
h. Date of importation, as relied upon by the Department for
purposes of determining annual usage of the quota.
i. Timeframe for re-export (i.e., 12-month or 36-month), as
listed on the Certificate for Re-Export.
j. Scheduled date for re-export, as relied upon by the
Department for purposes of determining annual usage of the quota.
k. Notice of re-export filed with the Department, including the
date of such notification and the actual date of re-export.
[FR Doc. E7-23490 Filed 12-3-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P