REG - Sunda Energy PLC - Funding and operational update

Sunda EnergyAnnouncement

10/02/2026 07:00

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RNS Number : 3268S  Sunda Energy PLC  10 February 2026

THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONTAINS INSIDE INFORMATION FOR THE PURPOSES OF ARTICLE 7 OF
EU REGULATION 596/2014 (WHICH FORMS PART OF DOMESTIC UK LAW PURSUANT TO THE
EUROPEAN UNION (WITHDRAWAL) ACT 2018 ("EUWA")) ("UK MAR").

 

 

10 February 2026

Sunda Energy Plc

("Sunda" or "Sunda Energy" or the "Company")

 

Funding and operational update

 

Sunda Energy Plc (AIM: SNDA), the AIM-quoted exploration and appraisal company
focused on gas assets in Southeast Asia, is pleased to announce that it has
entered into an unsecured loan agreement (the "Facility") with Dr Andy Butler,
CEO of the Company (the "Director"), for up to £1.5 million with an initial
draw down of £400,000 being used to fund the transaction costs associated
with a proposed acquisition and to provide additional working capital for
Sunda's business activities. The Company also provides an operational update
on its activities in Timor-Leste and the Philippines.

 

Proposed Acquisition and Director Financing

As previously announced, Sunda is actively pursuing opportunities to
strengthen and diversify its upstream portfolio, with the goal of taking the
Company to a more robust position from which it can deliver on the potential
of its existing assets and provide additional growth options for investors.

 

One of these new business initiatives has now advanced, with Sunda having
entered into an exclusivity agreement with a third party (the "Seller") with
respect to the proposed acquisition of a portfolio of oil and gas production,
development and exploration assets (the "Proposed Acquisition").

 

The Company is conducting confirmatory due diligence and negotiating a binding
sales and purchase agreement (the "SPA") with the Seller. The Proposed
Acquisition remains subject to, amongst other things: (i) satisfactory
completion of due diligence by Sunda; (ii) the execution of the SPA; (iii) the
necessary financing being in place to fund the Proposed Acquisition; and (iv)
approval by shareholders of Sunda at a general meeting.

 

Discussions on the Proposed Acquisition are at an advanced stage and the
Company's board of directors is hopeful of a satisfactory outcome. However,
there can be no certainty that the SPA will be executed or that the Proposed
Acquisition will complete, nor the terms or timing of either thereof.

 

The Company will provide further information on the Proposed Acquisition in
due course.

 

To provide the funds required to progress the Proposed Acquisition and to
provide additional working capital, the Company has agreed the unsecured
Facility with the Director. An initial amount of £400,000 has been drawn
down, which can be increased up to a maximum of £1,500,000 during the term of
the loan. It is anticipated that future drawdowns will be put towards funding
for the Proposed Acquisition. The Facility matures on 9 February 2027 (the
"Repayment Date") and has an interest rate of 12% per annum, accruing daily
and payable on the Repayment Date. The Company can elect to repay amounts
outstanding under the Facility, in part or in full, subject to a 12% early
redemption fee.

 

Related Party Transaction

Dr Andy Butler is a director of the Company. Therefore, Dr Andy Butler is
deemed to be a related party pursuant to the AIM Rules for Companies (the "AIM
Rules"). The Facility between the Director and the Company constitutes a
related party transaction in accordance with Rule 13 of the AIM Rules.
Accordingly, the independent directors (being Rob Collins, Gerry Aherne, John
Chessher and Keith Bush), consider, having consulted with Allenby Capital
Limited, the Company's nominated adviser, that the terms of the Facility are
fair and reasonable insofar as Shareholders are concerned.

 

Operational Update

 

Timor-Leste TL-SO-19-16 PSC (Sunda 60% interest)

 

The Company's wholly owned subsidiary SundaGas Banda Unipessoal, Lda.
("SundaGas") is operator of the TL-SO-19-16 Production Sharing Contract (the
"PSC"), offshore Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, in partnership with its
government-owned joint venture partner TIMOR GAP Chuditch Unipessoal Lda
("TIMOR GAP"). The PSC area includes the Chuditch gas field, on which Sunda is
preparing to drill the Chuditch-2 appraisal well ("Chuditch-2").

 

SundaGas is continuing in its efforts to secure a rig to drill Chuditch-2,
although the planned contracting of a jack-up rig by the end of 2025 was
unfortunately not achieved. The Company has several ongoing initiatives in
parallel to secure suitable drilling rigs, in consultation with TIMOR GAP and
upstream regulator Autoridade Nacional do Petróleo ("ANP") and is hopeful
that it can report positive progress and provide more information in the near
future.

 

The procedure for issuances of an environmental licence for drilling
Chuditch-2 has taken longer than anticipated, owing to extensive feedback and
clarification requests arising from various iterations between ANP and Sunda's
HSE and operations teams of the key Environmental Impact Statement ("EIS") and
Environmental Management Plan ("EMP") documents. The Company has been liaising
closely with ANP, resulting in the latest versions of the EIS and EMP having
been submitted and these documents will today be uploaded onto the Company's
website. Following this resubmission, the evaluation committee established by
ANP will convene and then have 5 regulatory working days to complete their
assessment of the EIS and EMP, after which ANP will complete the final
processes for award of an environmental licence, for which regulations permit
up to 25 business days.

 

Further information concerning operational preparations will be provided in
due course.

 

In parallel to operations planning and as previously disclosed, SundaGas
continues to discuss a revised Farm-In Agreement (the "Farm-In") with its
partner TIMOR GAP, along the lines of the Farm-In Agreement announced on 24
April 2025 (and subsequently terminated as announced on 16 June 2025). If
executed, the Farm-In is expected to be on similar terms to the April 2025
agreement and to include provisions for accelerated funding to assist the
Company in all its contracting preparations for the drilling of Chuditch-2.
The timing of a Farm-In is expected to be aligned with the execution of a rig
contract and to support Sunda's broader, ongoing efforts to secure funding for
the drilling of Chuditch.

 

More broadly, the Company notes the highly encouraging progress being made by
the government of Timor-Leste towards the development of offshore gas
resources in Timor-Leste, including the joint exploration studies announced by
Petronas Carigali, TIMOR GAP and ANP, the acceleration of discussions between
the parties involved in the Greater Sunrise project and the push to establish
onshore and offshore gas infrastructure, which will be key to future Chuditch
gas exports.

 

Philippines Sulu Sea, Service Contracts 80 and 81 (Sunda 37.5% non-operated in
both)

Service Contracts 80 and 81 ("SC 80" and "SC 81" respectively) were issued to
Sunda and its joint venture partners on 8 October 2025, with an effective date
of 24 September 2025. Since that time, operator Triangle Energy (TEG.AX) has
been compiling all available data, assisted by Sunda's technical team, and
making preparations for 3D seismic data reprocessing. This reprocessing
project is expected to commence shortly and is intended to delineate
effectively the existing discoveries and cast a much clearer light on the
overall prospective resources across the two blocks.

 

The Company is pleased with the level of incoming industry interest already
received in the Sulu Sea project, reflecting the quality and potential of the
fairway covered by SC 80 and SC 81. Sunda looks forward to sharing further
updates as this exciting and impactful exploration project progresses.

 

Gerry Aherne, Chairman of the Sunda board of directors, commented:

 

"I believe the Company can look forward to an exciting and successful 2026,
commencing with the targeting of a quality acquisition that, if completed,
will put the business in a stronger position, with additional optionality and
opportunity for growth. It will also help deliver on its material gas asset in
Timor-Leste and exciting exploration potential in the Philippines.

 

I thank the management team for their tireless efforts and especially Andy
Butler for his demonstrated commitment to take Sunda to a more sustainable
level."

 

Dr Andy Butler, CEO, commented:

 

"Diversifying Sunda's portfolio and strengthening our financial position
through our planned acquisition will enable us to more effectively develop all
areas of our business for the benefit of shareholders and host country
stakeholders. Getting the Timor-Leste project back on track after the
postponed Chuditch-2 campaign has proved challenging, but the team remains
focussed on securing a new rig and progressing as quickly as possible towards
drilling. We look forward to being in a position to making further
announcements soon, but in the meantime, I thank our shareholders for their
ongoing patience and support as we transition Sunda's business for a robust
future."

 

ENDS

 

 

For further information, please contact:

 

 Sunda Energy Plc                                                   Tel: +44 (0) 20 7770 6424

 Andy Butler, Chief Executive

 Rob Collins, Chief Financial Officer

 Allenby Capital Limited (Nominated Adviser and Joint Broker)       Tel: +44 (0) 203 328 5656

 Nick Athanas, Nick Harriss, Ashur Joseph (Corporate Finance)

 Kelly Gardiner (Sales and Corporate Broking)

 Hannam & Partners Advisory Limited (Advisor and Joint Broker)      Tel: +44 (0) 20 7907 8502

 Neil Passmore (Corporate Finance)

 Leif Powis (Sales)

 Celicourt Communications (Financial PR and IR)                     Tel: +44 (0) 20 7770 6424

 Mark Antelme, Philip Dennis, Charles Denley-Myerson                sunda@celicourt.uk

 

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