O’Neill said at the briefing: “So the Timorese are very keen to have [technological] development in the country. And we recognise it’s an important national project for them. So we feel like it’s appropriate to reopen the concept evaluation, understand the technologies, understand the technical challenges.”

Woodside executives have previously said it was only viable to transport gas from the Sunrise project to Darwin, in Australia’s Northern Territory, where two LNG plants are already in the works, Argus Media reported. It mentioned that several political changes this year have shifted Sunrise’s outlook to make it unviable for the company.

O’Neill’s comments, came as Prime Minister Taur Matan Ruak hosted a meeting with Steve Bracks, the Special Representative for Greater Sunrise in Australia, in Dili on Thursday where the benefits of the project’s development for Timorese people was discussed.

"Our main intention is to have a joint venture (between Timor-Leste and Australia) that benefits all,” said Bracks. “However, to achieve its expected result I need to talk with all relevant partnerships to get its solution.”

Timor-Leste sees Greater Sunrise, the largest untapped gas reserve under its control, as a crucial nation-building initiative that it will use to develop the infrastructure needed for gas production.

Woodside previously stated that LNG export facilities onshore in Timor-Leste would be “commercially unviable”.

The Australian operator announced earlier this year that it might only participate in the upstream portion of the project, allowing Timor-Leste to cover the costs of the onshore export facility and pipelines. At the time, these were estimated around $14bn.