Context : The distribution of satellite galaxies around the Milky Way and Andromeda and their correlation in phase space pose a major challenge to the standard \Lambda CDM model of structure formation .
Other nearby groups of galaxies are now being scrutinized to test for the ubiquity of the phenomenon .

Aims : We conducted an extensive CCD imaging survey for faint , unresolved dwarf galaxies of very low surface brightness in the whole Centaurus group region , encompassing the Cen A and M 83 subgroups lying at a distance of roughly 4 and 5 Mpc , respectively .
The aim is to significantly increase the sample of known Centaurus group members down to a fainter level of completeness , serving as a basis for future studies of the 3D structure of the group .

Methods : Following our previous survey of 60 square degrees covering the M 83 subgroup , we extended and completed our survey of the Centaurus group region by imaging another 500 square degrees area in the g and r bands with the wide-field Dark Energy Survey camera at the 4 m Blanco telescope at CTIO .
The surface brightness limit reached for unresolved dwarf galaxies is \mu _ { r } \approx 29 mag arcsec ^ { -2 } .
The faintest suspected Centaurus members found have m _ { r } \approx 19.5 mag or M _ { r } \approx - 8.8 mag at the mean distance of the group .
The images were enhanced using different filtering techniques .

Results : We found 41 new dwarf galaxy candidates , which together with the previously discovered 16 dwarf candidates in the M 83 subgroup amounts to almost a doubling of the number of known galaxies in the Centaurus complex , if the candidates are confirmed .
We carried out surface photometry in g and r , and report the photometric parameters derived therefrom , for all new candidates as well as previously known members in the surveyed area .
The photometric properties of the candidates , when compared to those of Local Group dwarfs and previously known Centaurus dwarfs , suggest membership in the Centaurus group .
The sky distribution of the new objects is generally following a common envelope around the Cen A and M 83 subgroups .
How the new dwarfs are connected to the intriguing double-planar feature recently reported must await distance information for the candidates .

Conclusions :