The nation’s top steelmaker POSCO has reorganized its merger and acquisition department in an apparent move to further push ahead with its aggressive M&A vision.

POSCO recently integrated its strategic business department into the corporate strategy department 1, officials confirmed Monday.

The former, initiated back in 2009 by chairman Chung Joon-yang, has been spearheading the company’s aggressive M&A projects over the years.

The corporate strategy department 1 is one of POSCO’s key divisions, suggesting the long-term future visions and directions of the company.

“The purpose of consolidating the two departments was to combine the company’s strategic planner and the implementer and to maximize the efficiency of the entire organization,” said an official.

Also, M&A director Jeon Woo-sig was promoted to executive vice president and appointed as the head of the new integrated department.

As a finance expert and M&A chief, Jeon led the company’s major acquisition projects, including that of the general trading company Daewoo International Corporation and Southeast Asia’s largest stainless maker Thainox.

The steelmaker, however, was also accused of worsening its financial structure as it spent trillions of won on overseas M&As in 2010. It also invested some trillions of won in acquiring shares in Canada’s mining business and in building new steel mills in Indonesia and Brazil.

The firm thus set to pruning off some of its branches last year but nevertheless pledged to promote overseas M&A expansion as its key future business strategy.

“The M&A deals were a means to secure the company’s foothold in future businesses such as the industrial material and energy sectors,” said the official.

“We have always taken caution as not to invade upon the field of small and medium-sized companies or business fields which are unrelated to us.”

The promotion of M&A chief Jeon also displays POSCO’s determination to carry on its M&A blueprint, observers said.

By Bae Hyun-jung (tellme@heraldcorp.com)