Sanctions on Iran’s oil and gas sector could be lifted in the first week of January, according to Amir Hossein Zamaninia, Iran’s deputy oil minister for international affairs Saturday, as the country seeks an agreement with OPEC to accommodate its extra barrels. “After finishing some paper work, I think the sanctions will be lifted in the first week of January,” Zamaninia told reporters as Iran released its new petroleum contracts at an event in Tehran Saturday. Zamaninia said there would be no issue with finding a market for the extra barrels of Iranian crude once the sanctions are lifted. “I think we won’t have any big problem with selling 500,000 b/d of oil that are coming ahead. It can go to Europe, it will go to Asia and Africa,” Zamaninia said, adding that Iran had already been approached by customers in Europe, Asia and Africa. He was also hopeful […]