Baron Oil, an oil and gas company planning to drill the Chuditch-2 appraisal well offshore Timor-Leste in early 2025, has officially changed its name. The name change to Sunda Energy was proposed in June to reinforce the company's focus on Southeast Asian energy markets. The new name refers to the vast archipelago of islands in the Southeast Asia region. The company's name change to Sunda Energy Plc became effective on Friday, 5 July 2024. Notably, Baron Oil's subsidiary operating the Timor-Leste licence containing the Chuditch gas field is called SundaGas. 

SundaGas holds a 60% stake in the block, with the state-owned Timor GAP owning the remaining 40%. The licence recently entered Contract Year Three, which includes a commitment to drill an appraisal well (Chuditch-2) on the Chuditch gas field. In June, the company said its board was confident that financing would be in place in time to enable the drilling of the Chuditch well in early 2025. The well site is located 5.1 km (3.1 mi) from the original Chuditch-1 discovery well, in a water depth of 68 m (223 ft), and 286 m east-northeast of the initial location. A jackup rig is planned to be used to drill the well.

KeyFacts Energy: Sunda Energy Timor-Leste country profile