TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Nippon Steel Corp. said Thursday it will delay the deadline for its planned acquisition of United States Steel Corp. to March 2025 instead of the end of this year, citing an ongoing review of the deal in the United States.

The move came after a U.S. panel of federal agencies could not reach a consensus on whether to approve the $14.1 billion sale of U.S. Steel to the Japanese company, leaving the final decision to President Joe Biden.

Biden, who leaves office on Jan. 20, must announce a decision within 15 days of the referral, which was made on Monday, according to Nippon Steel.

The decision to delay the acquisition deadline also reflected the ongoing review process by U.S. antitrust authorities, the company said.

"Nippon Steel hopes that the president will use this time to conduct a fair and fact-based evaluation of the acquisition," it said in a statement.