Brussels, 23/01/2002 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission is expected to file a complaint with the World Trade Organisation (WTO) against the US decision to place a 33% surtax on enriched uranium from the European Union. Gravely concerned by the now "final" decision taken by the Trade Department on Tuesday, after the inquiry carried out by the United States International Trade Committee (ITC), it mainly challenges the method used by the federal body to impose on Europeans a double dumping levy, and unfair subsidies . It notes that the data and arguments communicated to it were not taken into account. "The Union will now examine the decision more closely and reserves itself the right to take the matter before the WTO if the dispute cannot be resolved amicably", commented Commissioner Pascal Lamy.
The Trade Department's decision aims at a value of over $200 million in Community exports, mainly produced by the French public group, Eurodif SA, which will have both antidumping duties and countervailing duties amounting to 32.78% (19.57 and 13.21% respectively) imposed on it from 4 February this year. The measure will be retroactive to July and May 2001 respectively. Furthermore, the Commissioners (one of whom was absent and another declined) closed the anti-subsidy procedure aimed at other European suppliers, mainly that considered an international consortium (the Anglo-German-Dutch group Urenco Ltd) by imposing a price increase of 2.26% to offset the combined State aid that it had enjoyed. According to the European Commission, the subsidy margin of 2.26% does not correspond to reality, as the level of subsidies granted before the merger of production installations was negligible. Eurodif noted that French exports account for over half of all European uranium deliveries to the American market, refuting the Trade Department's argument that the company was acquired at an unduly high price by EDF, concluding in the existence of subsidies. Eurodif considers that the firm which is at the origin of the matter, namely United States Enrichment Corporation (USEC), is not a producer of low enriched uranium but a supplier of enrichment services and that, as such, it did not have the grounds to file a complaint. Two years ago, USEC had accused European producers of selling their products on the US market at a price below the production cost and of benefiting from unfair State subsidies.