OCTG
CBP finds Chinese OCTG being transshipped via Thailand
Written by Laura Miller
May 30, 2024
The US OCTG Manufacturers Association (USOMA) announced that the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency made an initial affirmative determination of duty evasion practices.
CBP preliminarily found there is “reasonable suspicion” that two Thai companies, Petroleum Equipment (Thailand) Co. and Thai Oil Pipe Co., have been transshipping OCTG made in China to the US and falsely declaring it to be of Thai origin.
This effectively and illegally skirts having to pay the US ADs of 99.14% and CVDs of 27.08% that are currently in place on Chinese-origin OCTG.
Additionally, 10 US importers were also found to be importing Chinese OCTG transshipped through Thailand:
- Amek Aluminum & Stainless
- Centric Pipe
- Copley International Group
- Energy Pipe & Equipment Rentals
- Kana Energy Services
- LE Commodities
- Lixin Energy Group
- Longfellow Energy
- Trek Metals
- TSPGA
As such, CBP will now implement a number of interim measures, including extending and suspending the liquidation of the subject OCTG and requiring additional documentation for entry. The agency has seven months to finalize its investigation and set appropriate penalties.
“Measures like this help promote a healthy, competitive US OCTG supply chain to responsibly develop America’s energy resources with reliable, high-quality products, with a lower carbon footprint,” commented Luca Zanotti, president of Tenaris USA and chairman of USOMA.
The CBP investigation was initiated on Feb. 23, 2024, after USOMA filed an allegation of transshipment under the Enforce and Protect Act (EAPA).
The EAPA, signed into law in 2016, established procedures for any interested party to submit a claim of duty evasion. Since its implementation, CBP has launched more than 300 investigations and identified over $1 billion in AD/CVDs owed to the US government.
“Filing this EAPA allegation was the first step that USOMA has taken to combat unfairly traded imports, but it will certainly not be our last,” noted Jacky Massaglia, SVP of Vallourec North America and vice chairman of USOMA.
Laura Miller
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