TMI Blog2023 (11) TMI 570X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... eeds to be noticed is that in the earlier final findings dated 29-5-2009 relating to safeguard duty investigation in respect of import of aluminium flat rolled products and aluminium foil to India from China PR, which concerned Hindalco also a domestic producer, it was sought to be contended by the interested parties that aluminium colour coated coils are not manufactured by the domestic industry and, therefore, cannot be included in the ambit of product under consideration. It would be seen from the aforesaid final findings recorded by the designated authority that it was not a case set up by Hindalco that it manufactures colour coated coil - In the case of coating by fluorine carbon, the aluminium coil is subjected to fluorine carbon resin, pigment and it is after high temperature roasting and baking that the paint is solidified with dry films with super weather resistance. The inevitable conclusion that follows from the aforesaid discussion is that Hindalco does not manufacture/produce colour coated coil as it has failed to produce any evidence before the designated authority or before the Tribunal to substantiate that it has even the capacity to manufacture/produce colour co ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ted by the designated authority by a notification dated 8-9-2020 to determine the existence, degree and effect of the alleged dumping and to recommend the amount of anti-dumping duty, which, if levied, would be adequate to remove the injury to the domestic industry. The investigation was conducted for the period from 1-4-2019 to 31-3-2020 and the injury analysis period was notified to be from 1-4-2016 to 31-3-2019 and the period of investigation. The designated authority provided an opportunity to all the interested parties to present their submissions orally in the hearing conducted on 25-5-2021 and the interested parties who presented their views were advised to file written submissions of the views expressed orally by them. The interested parties were also provided an opportunity to file rejoinder submissions to the views expressed by the opposing interested parties. A disclosure statement containing the essential facts which would form the basis for the final findings was issued to the interested parties on 26-8-2021 and the interested parties were allowed time upto 2-9-2021 to give their comments. The final findings of designated authority were notified on 7-9-2021. The conclu ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e injury. Therefore, the Authority recommends imposition of the anti-dumping duty on the imports of subject goods originating in or exported from the subject country. 129. Having regard to the lesser duty rule followed by the Authority, the Authority recommends imposition of the anti-dumping duty equal to the lesser of the margin of dumping and the margin of injury so as to remove the injury to the domestic industry. The Authority, therefore, considers it necessary to recommend imposition of the definitive anti-dumping duty equal to the amount mentioned in the column (7), on all imports of the subject goods described at Column (3) of the duty table, originating in or exported from China PR, from the date of notification to be issued in this regard by the Central Government. 3. The Central Government, thereafter, issued the customs notification dated 6-12-2021 imposing anti-dumping duty on flat rolled products of aluminium for a period of 5 years from the date of publication of the notification. However, the following two products were excluded from the scope of the subject goods : (i) Can-body Stock-also includes Can End Stock (CES) used to make aluminium cans. (ii ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... d aluminium coils in any commercial volumes nor they were sold in the market in commercial volumes and in fact the domestic industry does not even have the capacity/capability/own plant and equipment to manufacture it and the appellant had been importing it only for this reason; (ii) The designated authority committed an error in including colour coated aluminium coils in the subject goods only on the basis of a statement made by Hindalco, without even verifying the claim which was based only on one invoice provided by Hindalco; (iii) The designated authority committed an error in not following its own Manual of Standard Operating Practices according to which the product under consideration should include only those products which are produced and sold by the domestic industry commercially; (iv) The present determination made by the designated authority is contrary to the safeguard duty investigation against import of aluminium flat rolled products from China PR initiated at the instance of the Hindalco, where colour coated aluminium coil was excluded from the scope of the product under consideration; (v) The finding recorded by the designated authority that ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... following submissions : (i) Colour coated aluminium coil was produced and sold by the domestic industry during the period of investigation. Hindalco had provided evidence to the effect that it had produced and sold colour coated aluminium coils to an interested party in the investigation; (ii) The dumped imports of colour coated aluminium coils from China PR is preventing the domestic industry from competing with imports of colour coated aluminium coils; (iii) The anti-dumping duty levied on colour coated aluminium coils will counteract the effects of dumping and ensure that colour coated aluminium coils are imported at fair and undumped prices; (iv) If certain grades of the product under consideration are exempted on the basis that they cannot cater to the entire demand/requirement of that particular grade in India and cheap dumped imports at unfair prices are allowed to continue as they did before the imposition of anti-dumping duty through the impugned notification, the domestic industry would never be able to increase capacity with respect to such grades; (v) The cases cited by the appellant are not applicable to the facts and circumstances of th ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... eets of various dimensions. FRP is made from primary or secondary aluminium which may undergo several processes such as melting alloying, slab casting (slabs/concast), hot rolling, cold rolling, and other finishing processes and used for a variety of applications depending upon the gauge, temper, alloy, width, finish etc. xx xx xx (e) Exclusion requests : With regard to exclusion requests made by the interested parties, the domestic industry has submitted as follows : xx xx xx Colour Coated Aluminium Coil ix. The domestic industry has supplied Colour Coated Aluminium Coil to various customers in the POI 12. The submissions made by the other interested parties on colour coated aluminium coils are as follows : C.2 Submissions made by the other interested parties 6. The following are the submission made by the other interested parties with regard to the product under consideration and like article : (a) to (c) xx xx xx (d) Exclusion requests : Following exclusions have been requested by the opposing interested parties : xx xx xx Colour Coated Aluminium Coils (i) to (ix) xx ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... . 22. With respect to the exclusion of Colour Coated Aluminium Coil in past investigations, the Authority notes that for the purposes of the current investigation, the Authority has looked at the evidence and data provided by the domestic industry and the Authority notes that the domestic industry is manufacturing and has supplied colour coated aluminium coil to customers and, therefore, they are included within the scope of the PUC. 14. The appellant filed comments to the disclosure statement and submitted a list of 21 members of ACP Manufacturers who had not been supplied the said product by the domestic industry to controvert the claim made by the domestic industry regarding sale to various customers . An affidavit was also filed by the appellant before the designated authority to the effect that none of the members had ever purchased any quantity of colour coated aluminium coil from Hindalco, and in fact, they were not even aware that Hindalco was producing or selling the said product nor Hindalco had ever approached them for supply of the goods. A number of questions were also raised with regard to the fact that it was not possible for Hindalco to produce colour coated ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... an item in the definition of the PUC. Similarly, if an item is produced and consumed only captively (in-house) without any outside sales the DI s request for an investigation against this product may be considered with caution. The PUC should preferably include those items, which are produced and commercially sold in the domestic market by the respective DI. An exception could be the cases where the applicant is a new industry, who has set up facility for a new product or could be an upstream product of an existing industry and the new industry is facing difficulty in capturing market on account of dumped imports of the product (Emphasis supplied) 18. The designated authority has included colour coated coil within the scope of the product under consideration for imposition of anti-dumping duty ignoring the following facts : (a) It was not being manufactured/produced by domestic industry in any commercial volumes; (b) It was not being sold in the market in commercial volumes; (c) It has been imported in significant volumes; (d) Domestic industry does not even have the capability and/or own capacity and/or, own plant and equipment to manufacture such ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 20. What also needs to be noticed is that in the earlier final findings dated 29-5-2009 relating to safeguard duty investigation in respect of import of aluminium flat rolled products and aluminium foil to India from China PR, which concerned Hindalco also a domestic producer, it was sought to be contended by the interested parties that aluminium colour coated coils are not manufactured by the domestic industry and, therefore, cannot be included in the ambit of product under consideration. It would be seen from the aforesaid final findings recorded by the designated authority that it was not a case set up by Hindalco that it manufactures colour coated coil. The process of manufacture of colour coated coil has also been elaborately described by the designated authority. The designated authority noticed that manufacture of colour coated coil requires separate plant of high investment and the coating is done either by fluorine carbon or polyester. In the case of coating by fluorine carbon, the aluminium coil is subjected to fluorine carbon resin, pigment and it is after high temperature roasting and baking that the paint is solidified with dry films with super weather resistance. ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... higher on account of extra cost to be incurred in manufacturing. 64. The PE coating colour coil uses high molecular polymer as monomer with addition of alkyd to made UV resistant coating. The compact molecular structure makes paint surface luster and smooth. The PE coating coil has weather resistant properties for 8-10 years. It is specially applied for internal decoration and sign board. In contrast to this aluminium coils are not weather resistant on account of aluminium being chemically active. The physical properties of bare aluminium are different than that of PE coating coils. The chemical properties of PE coated coil is different than that of bare aluminium coil as certain chemical properties of the aluminium coil are suppressed by PE coatings to make it weather proof. The bare coil cannot substitute the use of PE coils on account of specialty treatment of bare aluminium coil through elaborate process accomplished by a separate high investment plant. Besides this the price structure of such coated coils are different and ordinarily higher on account of extra manufacturing coat incurred in manufacturing such coils. 65. Therefore, the imported PVDF coating coil and PE c ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... he Learned Counsel for the DA admitted that there is no separate finding recorded with reference to colour coated aluminium foil. As the appellants and the Domestic Industry are in agreement on this proposal, he has nothing further to submit. 8. We note that there is no specific finding regarding the inclusion or exclusion of colour coated aluminium foil in the final findings by the DA. However, in the overall scope of recommendation of AD duty on aluminium foils in the absence of specific exclusion the apprehension of the appellants will be correct to the effect that AD duty will get attracted by default. We note that the product is not being manufactured in India. The DI had specifically supported in the submissions before us that the product under consideration can exclude colour coated aluminium foil as the same is not manufactured in India. 9. We note all the parties before us are in agreement to the effect that the colour coated aluminium foil is not specifically discussed for Anti-Dumping duty and there are valid grounds for its exclusion from the scope of the AD levy. Noting the consent as pleaded before us, we find it fit and proper to order for the exclusion of the ..... 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