Sunda Energy applies for two offshore Philippines licences

Sunda Energy announced on Wednesday that it has submitted applications for two offshore licence areas in the Philippines, as part of its strategic focus on expanding gas exploration in South East Asia.

The AIM-traded firm said the licence areas, in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), contained several significant gas discoveries with substantial potential for future development.

It said the applications were made in partnership with three other companies during the First Conventional Energy Bid Round in BARMM.

If successful, Sunda expected to hold a 37.5% non-operated interest in any resulting service contracts.

The offshore areas reportedly offered material gas discoveries and considerable upside potential, which Sunda aimed to evaluate if the licences were awarded.

It said the move was in line with its refined strategy, prioritising the acquisition of material gas assets in South East Asia with low entry costs.

However, the company cautioned that there was no guarantee of securing the licences, nor was there certainty regarding the timing of any potential awards.

“Whilst the company remains strongly focussed on its upcoming appraisal activities on the Chuditch field in Timor-Leste, Sunda is also actively pursuing a business development strategy to target assets of similar materiality and in line with the company's goal of building a substantial energy business in the South East Asia region,” said chief executive officer Dr Andy Butler.

“I'm pleased that we are proving able to quickly execute on this strategy.

“This Philippines initiative focuses on an area where the Sunda team has considerable prior experience, and I believe that this can add significant early value to Sunda if it is successful.”

At 1100 BST, shares in Sunda Energy were up 1.54% at 0.07p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.