US fails to halt Iran's oil industry development: Minister

Iranian Petroleum Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh said the US has failed to exert pressures on Iran through sanctions against the country's oil industry, Tasnim news agency reported on Sunday.

"A lot of efforts were made to halt the development of Iran's oil industry through sanctions," Zanganeh told Tasnim.

However, the number of contracts with Iran's oil customers has increased, he said, adding that numerous projects in the country's oil and gas sectors have been implemented following the sanctions, Xinhua reported.

Oil and gas exploration continues across Iran, and the country's oil and gas reserves have been developed, the minister added.

Earlier this month, Zanganeh said Iran will not succumb to US pressure and will use every possible way to export its oil.

Iran's crude exports have been reduced by more than a half following the US sanctions on the country's energy sector last November.IANS