A day after announcing itself up for sale, shares of Montreal-based gold miner La Mancha Resources Inc. jumped 19 per cent on Thursday, the most in 17 months.

La Mancha Resources Inc. shares gained 61 cents on the Toronto Stock Exchange, up 18.71 per cent to close at $3.87 on volume of almost 292,000 shares, which Winnipeg Free Press reported is more than three times its daily average of 89,000.

Reuters News said the company had received a number of "verbal expressions of interest." No other details were supplied.

La Mancha Resources Inc. is majority owned by Compagnie Francaise de Mines et Metaux, a wholly-owned subsidiary of French nuclear reactor builder Areva SA, at 63 per cent. Data from Bloomberg News said the stake at present corresponds to a C$351 million or $353 million market value.

"The company's properties will need a lot of capital to develop and Areva is probably not ready for that sort of capital expenditure and is looking to monetise its asset," analyst Eric Allison said.

La Mancha Resources Inc. has gold mines operating in Africa, Australia and Argentina. For 2012, it had forecast total gold output will hit 130,000 ounces.

Its West Australian gold assets include Frog's Leg, the smaller White Foil gold mine and nearby exploration projects Park Dam and Kintore.

Frog's Leg is expected to generate between 60,000 ounces and 65,000 ounces of gold this year, pegged towards an average cash cost of $US700 per ounce, The West Australian reported.

La Mancha Resources Inc. retained BMO Nesbitt Burns Inc. as financial adviser and Fasken Martineau as Canadian legal adviser for the sale process.