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ECJ annuls US ethanol anti-dumping duty

The European Court of Justice (ECJ) has annulled the European Union’s (EU) countrywide 9.5% anti-dumping duty on all ethanol imported from the United States. The duty had been in place since February 2013.

US-based Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) and Growth Energy announced that they welcomed the decision, which was made on 9 June.

The ECJ ruled that the five-year anti-dumping duty of $83.03 per metric tonne was invalid because the European Commission was required by EU law to give each sampled US company its own antidumping rate.

Instead, the EC based its countrywide rate on all parties, even though the majority of them were never properly sampled, in direct violation of both the European Commission’s own rules and longstanding WTO (World Trade Organization) precedent.

In May 2013, RFA and Growth Energy filed a joint complaint, outlining violations by the European Commission in its antidumping investigation. The antidumping duty had effectively shut out US ethanol producers from accessing the European market, which before the penalty was imposed had represented a 300-million-gallon market for our industry.

“The antidumping duty should have never been assessed,” said Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Bob Dinneen. “We feel vindicated and thank the EU General Court for its common sense ruling.”

“From the beginning, we believed the implementation of an EU duty on imported ethanol violated EU law,” said Emily Skor, Growth Energy CEO. “We would like to thank the EU General Court for its fair and logical ruling, and are pleased with their decision.”

However, the anti-dumping duty remains in place, pending a possible appeal by the EU. The EU has approximately two months to file an appeal.





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