RE:drill schedule and consultant review of core samples I'm not the industry expert you seek, but I'll give you my guesses.
The core samples should be analysed, if not at site, at least at a warehouse in the region. Maybe some select portion of the cores will be flown out to a lab for chemical analysis.
Assuming a competent drill team and fairly compliant sedimentary rock they could manage several hundred feet a day once the drilling has commenced. There is probably only a kilometre or so of cover. Therefore, they could be visually inspecting shale as early as next week. We may have the first signs that the thesis is being confirmed very soon.
They are working with the Univsity of Namibia and the Namibian Government quite closely. It is safe to assume that they will share the seismic data with them.
Since they have sufficent expertise within the company for the geochemistry, they may not need outside consultants until the summer. Probably Sproule will be recomissioned to update the economic study then.