TransCanada says the pause is necessary while it negotiates with Nebraska over the pipeline's route through the state.
The move came as a surprise as TransCanada executives have pushed hard to get approval.
Environmental groups oppose the 1,179-mile (1,897km) pipeline, saying it will increase greenhouse gas emissions.
President Barack Obama is expected to reject the project, which has also been undermined by falling oil prices.
On
Monday the White House indicated that it would rule on the project
before the end of the president's term in office in January 2017.
Political complications
But a delay to the government review might leave a decision in the hands of President Obama's successor in the White House.
In
February 2015, the newly Republican-led Congress voted to begin
construction immediately, but Mr Obama vetoed the bill, saying it
undermined the necessary review process.
"Our expectation at this point is that the president will make a decision before the end of his administration on the Keystone pipeline, but when exactly that will be, I don't know at this point," White House spokesman Josh Earnest told reporters on Monday.
In a statement on Monday TransCanada chief executive Russ Girling
said: "We are asking (the US) State (Department) to pause its review of
Keystone XL based on the fact that we have applied to the Nebraska
Public Service Commission for approval of its preferred route in the
state."
The Keystone XL pipeline is
a proposed 1,179-mile (1,897km) pipe that would run from the oil sands
in Alberta, Canada, to Steele City, Nebraska, where it could join an
existing pipeline. It could carry 830,000 barrels of oil each day.
The oil fields in Alberta are landlocked and the pipeline would give their output access to international markets.
Many of North America's oil refineries are based in the Gulf Coast,
and industry groups on both sides of the border want to benefit.
But
environmentalists say the pipeline would boost the emission of
greenhouse gases and local community groups are concerned about
accidents and pollution.
An added complication is the victory of Canada's Liberal Party in last month's election.
New
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has been supportive of the pipeline, but
it is thought he might not pursue the project as aggressively as his
predecessor Stephen Harper, who said he wouldn't "take no for an answer"
from President Obama.
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