DGTR Recommends Anti-Dumping Duty of US$ 1335 per MT on Chinese HFC Component R-125 Imports in Final Findings on Complaint of Duopoly SRF and Gujarat Fluorochemicals

[DGTR Final Findings Case No. AD (OI)-31/2025 dated 23.09.2026]

The Directorate General of Trade Remedies (DGTR), under the Ministry of Commerce & Industry, has issued its final findings in the anti-dumping investigation concerning imports of Hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) Component R-125 (also known as HFC-125 or Pentafluoroethane) originating in or exported from China PR.

The investigation was initiated based on a joint application filed by SRF Limited and Gujarat Fluorochemicals Limited, who together represent 100% of India's domestic production during the Period of Investigation. The DGTR concluded that the domestic industry suffered material injury caused by significant dumped imports from China.

Proved Dumping Margins from China PR

The Designated Authority determined that Chinese producers failed to claim or demonstrate market economy status, leading the DGTR to construct the product's normal value based on the price payable in India. The final dumping margins for the unpacked form of the gas are significant across all exporters:

S.No.	Producer / Exporter	Dumping Margin % Range
1	Ruyuan Dongyangguang Fluorine Co., Ltd.	0% - 10%
2	Sinochem Environmental Protection Chemicals (Taicang) Co., Ltd.	20% - 30%
3	M/s Zibo Feiyuan Chemical Co., Ltd.	30% - 40%
4	Shandong Dongyue Refrigerants Co., Ltd.	40% - 50%
5	All other producers/exporters	50% - 60%

Note: No separate price or dumping margin was determined for the "Packed" form of HFC-125, as no imports of packed gas were reported during the POI.

Core Findings & Regulatory Context

· Kigali Amendment Shift: HFC Component R-125 has a massive Global Warming Potential (GWP) of 3,500, heavily weighting India's carbon phase-down trajectory. Opposing importers claimed the import surge was a temporary effect of Chinese plants manufacturing heavily in their 2020–2022 baseline years to secure future quotas. The DGTR rejected this argument, noting that China's phase-down does not restrict specific gases and its actual quota cuts do not start until 2029.

· Circumvention of Blends Protection: Initially, the Indian merchant market for R-125 was non-existent because local industries imported pre-mixed HFC blends. Following the imposition of anti-dumping duties on Chinese HFC blends in December 2021, Chinese exporters shifted to flood the market with unblended R-125 gas (a core component used to blend R-410 and R-407 refrigerants), effectively diluting the protection granted to domestic blenders.

· Absolute Import Surge: Imports of R-125 from China grew exponentially from a minuscule 20 MT in 2021–22 to a massive 2,020 MT during the Period of Investigation.

· Severe Financial Impact: The landed price from China (₹3,12,900 per MT) severely undercut the domestic industry, resulting in a 60% to 70% price undercutting margin. Local producers were forced to slash their selling prices far sharper than their operational costs fell, causing per-unit profitability, cash profits, and return on investment (ROI) to experience steep declines.

Next Steps in the Procedure

Having verified the injury and causal link, the DGTR has confirmed its recommendation to levy anti-dumping duties using the Lesser Duty Rule (capping the duty at the lower of the dumping or injury margin) to restore fair competition in the Indian market.