Namdeb has embarked on a ten year project to develop appropriate on-beach and off-beach new generation mining systems to first conduct formal sampling programmes and then mining feasibility studies. The project formally commenced in 2000 and has given birth to new prototype mining systems, successful integration of visualization technology and human resource capacity building from the new experience of performing sampling and trial mining operations in the various Inshore areas. The project aims to complete formal sampling operations and critical systems development by the end of 2007 and then conduct feasibility studies in order to determine if Inshore mining can be done economically and substantively.
	Geographically, the Inshore consists of two areas, which are the Inter Tidal Corridor (ITC) and Ultra Shallow Water (USW). The ITC is the linear beach area that extends west of the current mining operations to the low water mark and traverses 100 kilometers along the coast north of the Orange River mouth. The USW is referred to as the surf zone area, which extends west of the low water mark to the 15m isobath.