A new private mineral exploration company focused on West Africa is to emerge from the combination of Avant Minerals and the Côte d'Ivoire assets of TSX-V-listed Orca Gold.

The new company, Montage Gold, will initially be owned 60% by Orca and 40% by Avant, prior to the completion of a concurrent non-brokered private placement financing of a minimum of C$7-million by third-party investors.

Upon closing of the combination and financing, expected by the end of August, the assets of Montage will include four permits and nine permit applications in Côte d'Ivoire totalling 4 243 km², nine permits and two permit applications under earn-in in Burkina Faso totalling 1 128 km² and a cash balance of at least C$11-million.

Eventually, investors in the financing will own 22.3% of Montage, with Orca and Avant holding 46.6% and 31.1%, respectively.

In Côte d'Ivoire, Montage will control one of best placed land packages, including the Morondo licence, which currently hosts a 1.2-million-ounce inferred resource and is strategically centered between Roxgold's Seguela project, 60 km to the south, and Barrick/Endeavour's Mankono joint venture adjacent to the north.

In Burkina Faso, the company will hold a dominant land position on the Sirba greenstone belt between the Kouri project of Golden Rim and the Samira Hill/Libiri deposit previously mined by Semafo. Avant presently owns 51% in this collection of properties and is earning into 70% from Predictive Discovery.

"The combination with Avant in West Africa provides Orca shareholders with opportunities to benefit from the strategic portfolio of permits and applications assembled by Orca and the portfolio and strong backing of Avant. For the foreseeable future, the company will focus its efforts in Côte d'Ivoire. The Bira and Bonsiega projects in Burkina Faso will provide the company with longer term upside. Montage will be the best financed and backed junior explorer in West Africa with a management team to match," said Orca CEO Rick Clark.

Management of Montage will include Hugh Stuart as CEO, Adam Spencer as president, and Glenn Kondo as CFO.