Sunda Steps Closer to Dusting Off 1985 Gas Field as New Zealand Bid Goes Exclusive

October 14, 2026 · 10 hours ago

Sunda has secured exclusivity for its New Zealand exploration permit bid, paving the way for a potential appraisal of a 41-year-old gas field.

London-listed Sunda Energy, the AIM-quoted exploration and appraisal company focused on gas assets in the Asia-Pacific region, has cleared a key hurdle in New Zealand, securing exclusive rights to advance its petroleum exploration permit application over the decades-old gas-condensate field in the offshore Taranaki Basin.

Sunda Energy is making progress in obtaining the rights to develop the Awakino gas field within the offshore area of the Taranaki Basin on the west coast of New Zealand’s North Island after its exploration permit application officially turned exclusive following the close of the competitive window.

The company confirmed the application submission under the New Zealand open market competitive process for a new petroleum exploration permit (PEP) in the Awakino area in July 2026. The PEP application area, amounting to approximately 645 square kilometers, contains the Awakino-1 and Awakino South-1/ST1 gas condensate field, originally discovered in 1985.