A technical glitch may have prevented Whakatane beating Nelson to the coveted title of New Zealand's sunniest place.
Nelson was the sunniest centre in 2009, recording 2571 hours, according to National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) statistics released on Wednesday.
Due to problems with recording equipment, Whakatane had no official sunshine records for the first four months of the year, but for the past eight months, was behind Nelson by just one hour, NIWA climate scientist James Renwick says.
Whakatane deputy mayor Graeme Hanlen says it's a big disappointment not to have the bragging rights to the sunniest place in New Zealand.
He says the climate plays a major part in promoting the district.
