Price Determination; Uranium From Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

[A-100-002]

Price Determination; Uranium From Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and

Uzbekistan

AGENCY: International Trade Administration, Import Administration,

Commerce.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: Pursuant to section IV.C.1. of the antidumping suspension

agreements on uranium from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan, the

Department calculated an observed market price for uranium of $11.37/

lb. On the basis of this price, the export quota from uranium pursuant

to Section IV.A. of each of the agreements is zero. Exports pursuant to

other provisions of the agreements are not affected by this price.

EFFECTIVE DATE: April 1, 1994.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Melissa Skinner or Beth Chalecki, Office of Agreements Compliance,

Import Administration, International Trade Administration, U.S.

Department of Commerce, 14th Street & Constitution Avenue NW.,

Washington, DC 20230; telephone: (202) 482-0159 or (202) 482-2312.

Price Calculation

Background

Section IV.C.1. of each agreement specifies that the Department

will issue the DOC observed market price on April 1, 1994, and use it

to determine the quota applicable to imports from the various republics

during the period April 1, 1994 to September 30, 1994.

Calculation Summary

Section IV.C.1. of each agreement specifies how the components of

the market price are reached. In order to determine the spot market

price, the Department utilized the monthly average of the Uranium Price

Information System Spot Price Indicator (UPIS SPI) and the weekly

average of the Uranium Exchange Spot Price (Ux Spot). In order to

determine the long-term market price, the Department utilized the

weighted average long-term price as determined by the Department on the

basis of information provided by market participants and a simple

average of the UPIS Base Price for the months in which there were new

contracts reported.

Our letters to market participants provided a contract summary

sheet and directions requesting the submitter to report his/her best

estimate of the future price of merchandise to be delivered in

accordance with the contract delivery schedules (in U.S. dollars per

pound U3O8 equivalent). Using the information reported in the

proprietary summary sheets, the Department calculated the present value

of the prices reported for any future deliveries assuming an annual

inflation rate of 4.2 percent, which was derived from a rolling average

of the annual GNP Implicit Price Deflator index from the past four

years. The Department used the base quantities reported on the summary

sheet for the purpose of weight-averaging the prices of the long-term

contracts submitted by market participants. We then calculated a simple

average of the UPIS Base Price and the long-term price determined by

the Department.

Weighting

As in previous price determinations, the Department used the

average spot and long-term volumes of U.S. utility and domestic

supplier purchases, as reported by the Energy Information

Administration (EIA), to weight the spot and long-term components of

the observed price. However, with the publication of EIA's 1992 Uranium

Industry Annual, we have used purchase data from the period of 1989-

1992, rather than 1988-1991. During this period, the spot market

accounted for 31.39 percent of total purchases, and the long-term

market for 68.61 percent.

Calculation Announcement

The Department determined, using the methodology and information

described above, that the observed market price is $11.37. This

reflects an average spot market price of $9.91, weighted at 31.39

percent, and an average long-term contract price of $12.04, weighted at

68.61 percent. Since this price is below the $13.00/lb. minimum

expressed in Appendix A of the agreements, there will be no quota under

Section IV.A. of the agreements available to any signatory republic for

the period April 1, 1994 to September 30, 1994.

Comments

Consistent with the Department's letters of interpretation dated

February 22, 1993, we provide interested parties our preliminary price

determination on March 10, 1994. We received no comments.

Allowing for additional information received since March 10, we

have determined that the observed market price for uranium is $11.37/

lb. The Department invites parties to provide pricing information for

use in the next price determination. Any such information should be

provided for the record and should be submitted by September 5, 1994.

Dated: April 1, 1994.

Paul L. Joffe,

Deputy Assistant Secretary for Import Administration.

[FR Doc. 94-8382 Filed 4-6-94; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510-DS-M