Iran oil minister Zanganeh to retire at end of Rouhani’s term

Iran’s Bijan Namdar Zanganehis the longest-serving oil minister in OPEC.

Iran’s veteran oil minister, Bijan Namdar Zanganeh, will retire when President Hassan Rouhani’s term ends this year, closing a career that started with the birth of the Islamic Republic in 1979 and has often been defined by his country’s turbulent relationship with the U.S. OPEC’s longest-serving oil minister said he won’t accept any proposal from Rouhani’s successor – who’ll be chosen during next month’s election – to continue in his post. “If they offer me the presidency I won’t accept it, let alone the ministry,” the 68-year-old engineer told reporters in Tehran, according to state-run Shana news agency. “I won’t take another official post.”​