Notice2026-20030
Large Diameter Graphite Electrodes From the People's Republic of China: Preliminary Affirmative Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair Value and Preliminary Affirmative Determination of Critical Circumstances
Primary source
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Published
September 30, 2026
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentInternational Trade Administration
Abstract
The U.S. Department of Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily determines that large diameter graphite electrodes (LDGE) from the People's Republic of China (China) are being, or are likely to be, sold in the United States at less than fair value (LTFV). The period of investigation (POI) is July 1, 2025, through December 31, 2025. Interested parties are invited to comment on this preliminary determination.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 91 Issue 188 (Wednesday, September 30, 2026)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 188 (Wednesday, September 30, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Pages 61828-61831]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-20030]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
International Trade Administration
[A-570-220]
Large Diameter Graphite Electrodes From the People's Republic of
China: Preliminary Affirmative Determination of Sales at Less Than Fair
Value and Preliminary Affirmative Determination of Critical
Circumstances
AGENCY: Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration,
Department of Commerce.
SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily
determines that large diameter graphite electrodes (LDGE) from the
People's Republic of China (China) are being, or are likely to be, sold
in the United States at less than fair value (LTFV). The period of
investigation (POI) is July 1, 2025, through December 31, 2025.
Interested parties are invited to comment on this preliminary
determination.
DATES: Applicable September 30, 2026.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Deborah Cohen, AD/CVD Operations,
Office III, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade
Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue
NW, Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-4521.
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 20,
2026.\1\ On June 23, 2026, Commerce postponed the preliminary
determination of this investigation; the revised deadline is now
September 22, 2026.\2\
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\1\ See Large Diameter Graphite Electrodes from the People's
Republic of China and India: Initiation of Less-Than-Fair Value
Investigations, 91 FR 13581 (March 20, 2026) (Initiation Notice).
\2\ See Large Diameter Graphite Electrodes from the People's
Republic of China: Postponement of Preliminary Determination in the
Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigation, 91 FR 38668 (June 26, 2026).
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For a complete description of the events that followed the
initiation of this investigation, see the Preliminary Decision
Memorandum.\3\ 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 <a href="https://access.trade.gov">https://access.trade.gov</a>. In addition, a complete
version of the Preliminary Decision Memorandum can be found at <a href="https://access.trade.gov/frnotices">https://access.trade.gov/frnotices</a>.
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\3\ See Memorandum, ``Decision Memorandum for the Preliminary
Affirmative Determination in the Less-Than-Fair-Value Investigation
of Large Diameter Graphite Electrodes from the People's Republic of
China,'' dated concurrently with, and hereby adopted by, this notice
(Preliminary Decision Memorandum).
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Scope of the Investigation
The products covered by this investigation are large diameter
graphite electrodes from China. For a complete description of the scope
of this investigation, see Appendix I.
Scope Comments
In accordance with the Preamble to Commerce's regulations,\4\ the
Initiation Notice set aside a period of time for parties to raise
issues regarding product coverage (i.e., scope).\5\ Certain interested
parties commented on the scope of the investigation as it appeared in
the Initiation Notice. For a summary of the product coverage comments
and rebuttal responses submitted to the record for this preliminary
determination, and accompanying discussion and analysis of all comments
timely received, see the Preliminary Scope Decision Memorandum.\6\
Commerce is preliminarily modifying the scope language as it appeared
in the Initiation Notice. See the revised scope in Appendix I to this
notice.
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\4\ See Antidumping Duties; Countervailing Duties, Final Rule,
62 FR 27296, 27323 (May 19, 1997) (Preamble).
\5\ See Initiation Notice, 91 FR at 13581-13582.
\6\ See Memorandum, ``Less-Than-Fair-Value and Countervailing
Duty Investigations of Large Diameter Graphite Electrodes from India
and the People's Republic of China: Preliminary Scope Decision
Memorandum,'' dated July 24, 2026 (Preliminary Scope Decision
Memorandum).
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Methodology
Commerce is conducting this investigation in accordance with
sections 731 and 733(b) of the Act. Pursuant to sections 776(a) and (b)
of the Act, we have preliminarily relied upon facts otherwise available
with adverse inferences (AFA) for the China-wide entity, which includes
the companies listed that did not respond to Commerce's request for
information pertaining to quantity and value, did not submit a separate
rate application, or did not submit a response to Commerce's initial
questionnaire. For a full description of the methodology underlying
Commerce's preliminary determination, see the Preliminary Decision
Memorandum.
[[Page 61829]]
Preliminary Affirmative Determination of Critical Circumstances
In accordance with section 733(e) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.206,
Commerce preliminarily determines that critical circumstances exist
with respect to imports of LDGEs from China from the China-wide entity.
For a full description of the methodology and results of Commerce's
critical circumstances analysis, see the Preliminary Decision
Memorandum.
Combination Rates
In the Initiation Notice,\7\ Commerce stated that it would
calculate producer/exporter combination rates for the respondents that
are eligible for a separate rate in this investigation. Policy Bulletin
05.1 describes this practice.\8\ In this case, because no respondent
qualified for a separate rate, producer/exporter combination rates were
not calculated.
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\7\ See Initiation Notice, 91 FR at 13585.
\8\ See Enforcement and Compliance's Policy Bulletin No. 05.1,
regarding, ``Separate-Rates Practice and Application of Combination
Rates in Antidumping Investigations involving Non-Market Economy
Countries,'' April 5, 2005 (Policy Bulletin 05.1), available on
Commerce's website at <a href="https://www.trade.gov/enforcement-and-compliance-policy-bulletins-0">https://www.trade.gov/enforcement-and-compliance-policy-bulletins-0</a>.
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Separate Rates
The Act does not address the establishment of a separate rate for
non-examined companies when Commerce limits its examination in an
administrative review covering a nonmarket economy pursuant to section
777A(c)(2) of the Act. However, Commerce's regulation at 19 CFR
351.109(g) states that Commerce will determine the separate rate by
following the process set forth in 19 CFR 351.109(f)(1)-(2), which
generally parallels the process for determining the all-others rate in
an investigation under section 735(c)(5) of the Act. Section
735(c)(5)(A) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.109(f) state that for non-
examined companies, in general, we will determine an all-others rate by
weight averaging the estimated weighted average dumping margins
established for each of the individually examined companies, excluding
zero and de minimis rates or any rates based entirely on facts
available. Accordingly, to determine the rate for non-examined separate
rate companies, Commerce's practice is to weight average the weighted-
average dumping margins for the selected mandatory respondents,
excluding rates that are zero, de minimis, or based entirely on facts
available. In this investigation, we preliminarily determine that that
no firms demonstrated eligibility for a separate rate and are, thus,
part of the China-wide entity, which is subject to a rate pursuant to
sections 776(a)(1) and (2) of the Act, as discussed above.
Preliminary Determination
Commerce preliminarily determines that the following estimated
weighted-average dumping margin exists:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Cash deposit
Weighted- rate (Adjusted
Producer/Exporter Average for subsidy
dumping margin offsets)
(percent) (percent)
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China-Wide Entity....................... 98.79* 95.61
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*Rate based on facts available with adverse inferences.
Suspension of Liquidation
In accordance with section 733(d)(2) and (e)(2) of the Act,
Commerce will direct U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to
suspend liquidation of subject merchandise, as described in Appendix I,
entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after the
date discussed below. Further, pursuant to section 733(d)(1)(B) of the
Act and 19 CFR 351.205(d), Commerce will instruct CBP to require a cash
deposit equal to the weighted-average amount by which normal value
exceeds U.S. price, as indicated in the chart above, as follows: (1)
for all Chinese producers/exporters of subject merchandise, which are
treated as part of the China-wide entity because they have not
established eligibility for a separate rate, the cash deposit rate will
be equal to the estimated weighted-average dumping margin established
for the China-wide entity; and (2) for all third-country exporters of
subject merchandise not listed in the table above, the cash deposit
rate is the cash deposit rate applicable to the China-wide entity that
supplied that third-country exporter.
Section 733(e)(2) of the Act provides that, given an affirmative
determination of critical circumstances, any suspension of liquidation
shall apply to unliquidated entries of merchandise entered, or
withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after the later of (a)
the date which is 90 days before the date on which the suspension of
liquidation was first ordered, or (b) the date on which notice of
initiation of the investigation was published. Commerce preliminarily
finds that critical circumstances exist for imports of subject
merchandise from the China-wide entity.\9\ In accordance with section
733(e)(2)(A) of the Act, the suspension of liquidation shall apply to
all unliquidated entries of merchandise from the China-wide entity that
were entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after
the date that is 90 days before the publication of this notice in the
Federal Register.
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\9\ See Preliminary Decision Memorandum.
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To determine the cash deposit rate, Commerce normally adjusts the
estimated weighted-average dumping margin by the amount of domestic
subsidy pass-through and export subsidies determined in a companion CVD
proceeding when CVD provisional measures are in effect. Accordingly,
where Commerce has made a preliminary affirmative determination for
domestic subsidy pass-through or export subsidies, Commerce has offset
the calculated estimated weighted-average dumping margin by the
appropriate rate(s). Any such adjusted rates may be found in the
``Preliminary Determination'' section's chart of estimated weighted-
average dumping margins above.
Should provisional measures in the companion CVD investigation
expire prior to the expiration of provisional measures in this LTFV
investigation, Commerce will direct CBP to begin collecting cash
deposits at a rate equal to the estimated weighted-average dumping
margins calculated in this preliminary determination unadjusted for the
passed-through domestic subsidies or for export subsidies at the time
the CVD provisional measures expire.
These suspension of liquidation instructions will remain in effect
until further notice.
Disclosure
Normally, Commerce discloses to interested parties the calculations
performed in connection with a preliminary determination within five
days of its public announcement or, if there is no public announcement,
within five days of the date of publication of this notice in
accordance with 19 CFR 351.224(b). However, because Commerce
preliminarily applied AFA to the China-wide entity in this
investigation in accordance with section 776 of the Act, and the
applied AFA rate is based solely on the Petition, there are no
calculations to disclose.
Consistent with 19 CFR 351.224(e), Commerce will analyze and, if
appropriate, correct any timely allegations of significant ministerial
errors by amending the preliminary determination. However, consistent
with 19 CFR 351.224(d), Commerce will not consider incomplete
allegations that do not address the significance standard under 19 CFR
351.224(g) following the
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preliminary determination. Instead, Commerce will address such
allegations in the final determination together with issues raised in
the case briefs or other written comments.
Verification
Because we have preliminarily determined that all producers/
exporters are part of the China-wide entity, verification will not be
conducted.
Public Comment
Case briefs or other written comments may be submitted to the
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance no later than 14
days after the date of publication of this preliminary determination in
the Federal Register. Rebuttal briefs, limited to issues raised in the
case briefs, may be filed not later than five days after the date for
filing case briefs.\10\ 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.\11\
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\10\ See 19 CFR 351.309(d); see also Administrative Protective
Order, Service, and Other Procedures in Antidumping and
Countervailing Duty Proceedings, 88 FR 67069, 67077 (September 29,
2023) (APO and Service Final Rule).
\11\ See 19 351.309(c)(2) and (d)(2).
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As provided under 19 CFR 351.309(c)(2)(iii) and (d)(2)(iii), we
request that interested parties provide at the beginning of their
briefs a public, executive summary for each issue raised in their
briefs.\12\ Further, we request that interested parties limit their
executive summary of each issue to no more than 450 words, not
including citations. We intend to use the executive summaries as the
basis of the comment summaries included in the issues and decision
memorandum that will accompany the final determination in this
investigation. We request that interested parties include footnotes for
relevant citations in the executive summary of each issue. Note that
Commerce has amended certain of its requirements pertaining to the
service of documents in 19 CFR 351.303(f).\13\
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\12\ We use the term ``issue'' here to describe an argument that
Commerce would normally address in a comment of the Issues and
Decision Memorandum.
\13\ See APO and Service Final Rule.
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Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.310(c), interested parties who wish to
request a hearing, limited to issues raised in the case and rebuttal
briefs, must submit a written request to the Assistant Secretary for
Enforcement and Compliance, U.S. Department of Commerce, within 30 days
after the date of publication of this notice. Requests should contain
the party's name, address, and telephone number, the number of
participants, whether any participant is a foreign national, and a list
of the issues to be discussed. If a request for a hearing is made,
Commerce intends to hold the hearing at a time and date to be
determined.
Final Determination
Section 735(a)(1) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.210(b)(1) provide that
Commerce will issue the final determination within 75 days after the
date of its preliminary determination. Accordingly, Commerce will make
its final determination no later than 75 days after the signature date
of this preliminary determination.
U.S. International Trade Commission Notification
In accordance with section 733(f) of the Act, Commerce will notify
the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) of its preliminary
determination of sales at LTFV. If the final determination is
affirmative, the ITC will determine before the later of 120 days after
the date of this preliminary determination or 45 days after the date of
this preliminary determination or 45 days after the final determination
whether imports of the subject merchandise are materially injuring, or
threaten material injury to, the U.S. industry.
Notification to Interested Parties
This determination is issued and published in accordance with
sections 733(f) and 777(i)(1) of the Act and 19 CFR 351.205(c).
Dated: September 22, 2026.
Scot Fullerton,
Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Antidumping and Countervailing
Duty Operations.
Appendix I
Scope of the Investigation
The merchandise covered by this investigation includes all large
diameter graphite electrodes of any length, whether or not finished,
of a kind used in furnaces, with a nominal or actual diameter
exceeding 425 millimeters (16.7 inches), and whether or not attached
to a graphite pin joining system or any other type of joining system
or hardware. The merchandise covered by the investigation also
includes graphite pin joining systems (commonly referred to as pins
or nipples) for large diameter graphite electrodes, of any length,
and with a minimum diameter of 228.6 mm (9 inches) at its widest
transverse cross-section, whether or not finished, of a kind used in
furnaces, and whether or not the graphite pin joining system is
attached to, sold with, or sold separately from, the large diameter
graphite electrode. Unfinished large diameter graphite electrodes
are graphitized electrodes that have not undergone final machining.
For purposes of the investigation, the country of origin is
determined by the country of graphitization.
Excluded from the scope of the investigation are large diameter
graphite electrodes that are subject to the existing antidumping
duty order on Small Diameter Graphite Electrodes from the People's
Republic of China. See Antidumping Duty Order: Small Diameter
Graphite Electrodes from the People's Republic of China, 74 FR 8775
(February 26, 2009) (SDGE China AD Order) due to an affirmative
determination of circumvention that imports of graphite electrodes
from the People's Republic of China, produced and/or exported by
Sinosteel Jilin Carbon Co., Ltd. and Jilin Carbon Import & Export
Company (collectively, Jilin Carbon), with an actual or nominal
diameter of 17 inches and otherwise meeting the description of the
scope of the SDGE China AD Order constitute merchandise subject to
the SDGE China AD Order. See Small Diameter Graphite Electrodes from
the People's Republic of China: Affirmative Final Determination of
Circumvention of the Antidumping Duty Order and Rescission of Later-
Developed Merchandise Anticircumvention Inquiry, 78 FR 56864
(September 16, 2013). In the case of graphite electrodes entering
the United States determined to be subject to the SDGE China AD
Order, such order controls. In the case of graphite electrodes
entering the United States meeting the scope definition of the
investigation and not covered by the scope of the SDGE China AD
Order, the scope of the investigation controls.
Large diameter graphite electrodes and graphite pin joining
systems for large diameter graphite electrodes that are covered by
the investigation are currently classified under the Harmonized
Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) statistical reporting
number 8545.11.0020. Merchandise covered by the investigation may
also enter under HTSUS statistical reporting numbers 3801.10.5090 or
3801.90.0050. The HTSUS numbers are provided for convenience and
customs purposes, but the written description of the scope is
dispositive.
Excluded from the scope of the investigation are certain thermal
energy storage (TES) graphite blocks. The excluded TES graphite
blocks are machine-milled, non-cylindrical graphite blocks, which
have: a coefficient of thermal expansion of 1.5 [micro]m/
(m[middot]K) or greater, and an apparent (also known as bulk)
density below 1.74 g/cm\3\, and which have an actual length of
between 228.6 mm (9.0 inches) and 3010 mm (118.5 inches), an actual
width between 228.6 mm (9.0 inches) and 560 mm (22.0 inches), an
actual height between 228.6 mm (9.0 inches) and 560 mm (22.0
inches), and which have been machined to include two or more holes
of at least 150 mm (5.9 inches) in depth and at least 35 mm (1.4
inches) in diameter.
The two or more 150 mm deep holes must be located: (i) along the
longest centerline of the longest side of the block, each located on
the same side of the block, (ii) spaced at intervals of no greater
than 1000 mm (39.4 inches) apart as measured from the outer edge of
the holes, and (iii) with the hole closest to each end of the
longest centerline
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located within 1000 mm of the corresponding end of the block. Blocks
may contain any number of additional holes, channels, or grooves in
any configuration or location, provided that at least two or more
holes of at least 150 mm depth are present as described above.
Further excluded from the scope of the investigation are certain
TES graphite blocks, anchors, and pins, regardless of shape, which
have a coefficient of thermal expansion of 1.5 [micro]m/(m[middot]K)
or greater, and an apparent (also known as bulk) density below 1.74
g/cm\3\, with actual dimensions such that any one or more of the
length, width, or height is less than 228.6 mm (9.0 inches).
Appendix II
List of Topics Discussed in the Preliminary Decision Memorandum
I. Summary
II. Background
III. Period of Investigation
IV. Discussion of the Methodology
V. Preliminary Affirmative Determination of Critical Circumstances
VI. Adjustments to Cash Deposit Rates for Export Subsidies in the
Companion Countervailing Duty Investigation
VII. Recommendation
VIII.
[FR Doc. 2026-20030 Filed 9-29-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P
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