U.S. Silicon Metal Producers Welcome Duties on Unfairly-Traded Silicon Metal Imports from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iceland
WASHINGTON, DC, December 8, 2020 – American manufacturers Globe Specialty Metals, Inc., a subsidiary of Ferroglobe PLC (NASDAQ:GSM) (“GSM”), and Mississippi Silicon LLC (“MS”), together representing the majority of American silicon metal production, today welcomed news that the U.S. Department of Commerce (“Commerce”) will impose preliminary duties of up to 47.54% on all silicon metal imports from Iceland and from Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Today’s announcement is the latest development in ongoing investigations of unfairly-traded silicon metal imports from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iceland, Malaysia and Kazakhstan and closely follows an announcement that Commerce will impose preliminary duties up to 120% on all silicon metal import from Kazakhstan. In August, the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) preliminarily determined that imports from all four countries are a cause of material injury to the U.S. industry.
“The Commerce Department’s action to address unfairly-traded imports from Bosnia and Herzegovina and Iceland come as good news to our business, our workers, and our entire industry,” said Eddie Boardwine, Chief Operations Officer of MS. “We greatly appreciate the government’s efforts to stop unfair trade practices and look forward to seeing conditions in the U.S. market reflect free and fair trade of silicon metal.”
On June 30, 2020, GSM and MS filed petitions to stop silicon metal producers in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iceland, Malaysia and Kazakhstan from selling dumped and unfairly subsidized silicon metal imports into the United States. In their petitions, the companies asked the Commerce and ITC to impose duties on to offset unfair pricing and unfair subsidies.
“The fact that suppliers in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Iceland have tilted the playing field has made it really difficult for us to even compete,” said Marco Levi, Chief Executive Officer of
GSM’s parent, Ferroglobe. “Like the duties recently imposed on imports from Kazakhstan, these duties will level the playing field and restore real, honest competition. We appreciate the diligent efforts by the Commerce Department to see that our trade rules are followed.”
Following today’s announcement, preliminary determinations will be announced in the Malaysia investigation on January 27, 2021.
Silicon metal is an important element added to various grades of aluminum alloys used in performance applications such as automotive components and aerospace products. Silicon metal also is a critical raw material in the production of silicone compounds used in numerous products including sealants, adhesives, rubber gaskets, caulking compounds, lubricants, food additives, coatings, polishes, and cosmetics, among others. In addition, silicon metal is the base material in the production of polysilicon, a purified form of silicon used in solar cells and semi-conductors.
For more on the petitions, see the companies’ press release.
For more on the ITC’s investigation, see the Commission’s press release. For more on Commerce’s investigations, see the agency’s press release.
For more on Commerce’s preliminary determination in the Kazakhstan investigation, see Globe’s and Mississippi Silicon’s press release.
Globe and Mississippi Silicon are represented in these proceedings by Adam H. Gordon, Esq. of The Bristol Group PLLC.
For more information
Contact Elizabeth Heaton at elizabeth@EAHstrategiesLLC.com or 202-445-9858
About Globe Specialty Materials
Globe Specialty Metals, Inc. is a wholly-owned U.S. subsidiary of Ferroglobe PLC, a leading global producer of silicon metal, silicon-based specialty alloys, and ferroalloys serving a customer base across the globe in dynamic and fast-growing end markets, such as solar, automotive, consumer products, construction and energy. Through its subsidiaries, GSM owns metallurgical manufacturing facilities and other operations in Ohio, West Virginia, New York, Alabama, Indiana, Florida and Kentucky.