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China's Shougang Group is pushing ahead with the takeover of Tonghua Iron & Steel Group in Jilin province, a company official said on Monday.

"The deal is still advancing, and talks are going well," said an official from Shougang's public relations department.

Her remarks contradicted earlier reports that Shougang had to suspend the takeover plan after meeting resistance from local government authorities on the matter of restructuring.

The official said the reports were "totally untrue" but declined to reveal a timetable for the deal.

Tonghua's proximity to North Korea, which provides iron ore to Chinese steel firms, could be its big attraction as a takeover target.

Beijing is encouraging mergers and acquisitions to boost steel sector consolidation.

Shougang is China's seventh largest mill, producing 17.3 million tonnes of crude steel last year. (Reporting by Ruby Lian and David Stanway; Editing by Jonathan Hopfner)