An underwater exploration project trying to find rough diamonds off the coast of the southern African nation of Namibia has begun, Diamond Intelligence reports. Diamond company Afri-Can Marine Minerals initiated prospecting operations at its 800-square-kilometer 3403 diamond concession on Sunday, and it is expected to last about two weeks.

Toronto Stock Exchange-listed Afri-Can intends to process over 500 samples in two separate stages. In its initial operation, it will extract 250 samples consisting of 5 square meters each. The firm is utilizing the Explorer, which is capable of acquiring up to 21 samples in a single day and has a depth range of a quarter-kilometer below the water's surface. Once it hits the ocean floor, it is able to dig down an additional eight meters to gather ore for processing, according to Diamond Intelligence.

Back in November, Mining.com reported that the initial exploration maybe be followed by a declaration of resource and another round of trial mining on a ten-square-kilometer section of the concession.