“We must try to have the [anti-Iran] sanctions lifted in order to speed up the process of the country’s development,” Zanganeh said on Sunday.
He said when the sanctions are removed, Iran's oil export revenues will hit USD 54.4 billion per annum, of which USD 14 billion will be allocated to filling the country’s annual budgetary gaps.
Zanganeh stated that more than USD 800 billion in investment in the petroleum industry is possible over eight years.
The minister also noted that Iran’s National Development Fund (NDF) has so far been tapped for more than USD 14 billion to finance oil, gas and petrochemical projects.
Zanganeh added that the new administration would invite domestic and foreign investors as Iran’s international status improves.
The minister has repeatedly said Iran’s oil production must exceed four million barrels per day.
At the beginning of 2012, the United States and the European Union imposed new sanctions on Iran’s oil and financial sectors with the goal of preventing other countries from purchasing Iranian oil and conducting transactions with the Central Bank of Iran.
Iran’s crude oil is subject to a European Union embargo that started on July 1, 2012, which also bars EU insurance firms from covering Iran's exports.
