The National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) found untapped light sweet crude oil near the city of Abadan, Bijan Zanganeh, the country's petroleum minister, has announced.
"This is the very first time we've gotten to crude oil inside the Abadan location," Zanganeh said.
READ MORE: Iran Not Going to Wait for EU to Develop Ways to Bypass US Sanctions — Zarif
The announcement comes after earlier this month the International Energy Agency (IEA) presented a report in which it stated that oil production in Iran, constrained by US sanctions, dropped by 520,000 barrels per day (bpd) in December, down from 2.8 million bpd in October.
In November last year, US President Donald Trump introduced a package of restrictive measures targeting Iran's oil exports. Despite the sanctions, Iran has continued its oil exploration efforts.