CLA-2-73:OT:RR:NC:1:117
Ralf Priemer
German American Chamber of Commerce
75 Broad Street
New York City, NY 10004
RE: The tariff classification of clad steel line pipe from Germany.
Dear Mr. Priemer:
In your letter dated November 9, 2010 you requested a tariff classification ruling on behalf of your client H. Butting GmbH & Co KG in Germany.
The product intended to be imported is described as a carbon steel outer pipe made to an API 5L Grade X60 specification and then lined with a stainless steel longitudinally welded inner pipe. The outer pipe is manufactured in Japan and is stated to predominate by weight over the inner pipe which is manufactured in Germany. The weight of the outer pipe accounts for 71 percent of the total weight of the product. The dimensions of the outer pipe which will determine the dimensions of the entire pipe for Customs classification purposes are stated to be 221 mm in outside diameter and 8.18 mm in wall thickness.
Information was submitted with your inquiry outlining step by step the processing required for the mechanical bonding of the two pipes into a single bimetal pipe. The steps in Germany are described as including: forming the inner pipe from coil and longitudinally welding it, heat treating, cutting and pickling the inner pipe, assembling the two pipes into a single product which includes telescopic alignment of the inner pipe, hydraulic expansion in an expansion and calibration press, hydrostatic pressure testing, cutting of the ends, end preparation for seal welding, seal welding of pipe ends, final beveling and sizing of pipe ends, testing, dimension check, marking and packing.
The applicable subheading for the carbon steel lined pipe will be 7304.19.1045, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which provides for tubes, pipes and hollow profiles, seamless, of iron (other than cast iron) or steel, line pipe of a kind used for oil or gas pipelines, other, of iron or nonalloy steel, having an outside diameter 215.9 mm or more but not exceeding 406.4 mm, having a wall thickness less than 12.7 mm. The rate of duty will be free.
Section 134.1(b) of the Customs Regulations defines "country of origin" as the country of manufacture, production, or growth of any article of foreign origin entering the U.S. Further work or material added to an article in another country must effect a substantial transformation in order to render such other country the "country of origin". A substantial transformation occurs when an article loses its separate identity and becomes a new article having a new name, character or use. We find that the origin of the lined carbon steel line pipes is Germany. The unlined line pipes lose their identity and are substantially transformed into a new and different lined bimetal pipe when subject to extensive processing in Germany.
You have asked whether this product is subject to antidumping duties or countervailing duties (AD/CVD). Written decisions regarding the scope of AD/CVD orders are issued by the Import Administration in the Department of Commerce and are separate from tariff classification and origin rulings issued by Customs and Border Protection. You can contact them at http://www.trade.gov/ia/ (click on “Contact Us”). For your information, you can view a list of current AD/CVD cases at the United States International Trade Commission website at http://www.usitc.gov (click on “Antidumping and countervailing duty investigations”), and you can search AD/CVD deposit and liquidation messages using the AD/CVD Search tool at http://www.cbp.gov (click on “Import” and “AD/CVD”).
Duty rates are provided for your convenience and are subject to change. The text of the most recent HTSUS and the accompanying duty rates are provided on World Wide Web at http://www.usitc.gov/tata/hts/.
This ruling is being issued under the provisions of Part 177 of the Customs Regulations (19 C.F.R. 177).
A copy of the ruling or the control number indicated above should be provided with the entry documents filed at the time this merchandise is imported. If you have any questions regarding the ruling, contact National Import Specialist Mary Ellen Laker at (646) 733-3020.
Sincerely,
Robert B. Swierupski
Director
National Commodity Specialist Division