New Zealand Energy Corp. (NZEC) has commenced drilling of the Waitapu-1 well, the first of an anticipated eight wells to be drilled by year-end 2012.

In addition, NZEC continues to expand its in-country team and has appointed James Watchorn to the position of operations manager.

On Aug. 19, NZEC commenced drilling of the Waitapu-1 well at its Waitapu site, approximately 1.3 km (0.5 sq miles) south of the company’s Copper Moki site. Waitapu-1 has a target depth of 2,172 m (7,125 ft) and is expected to drill through the Mt. Messenger formation. NZEC is permitting a number of new drill pads as the company advances toward its objective of drilling eight conventional wells by year-end 2012 and increasing production to 3,000 boe/d.

James Watchorn joined NZEC as operations manager on July 30, bringing more than 15 years of technical experience in oilfield operations to the company. He is a mechanical engineer experienced in all aspects of drilling, completions, and production, along with facility and wellsite construction.

Watchorn has worked for a number of oil and gas companies in North America and New Zealand, most recently as senior petroleum engineer for Origin Energy and production and facilities manager for TAG Oil. As operations manager, Watchorn will focus on upstream operations, working with NZEC’s general manager for upstream operations to design and execute the company’s E&P strategy.