Filed at 1:37 a.m. ET

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) -- A standoff between the state of South Carolina and the federal government over plutonium shipments is on hold at least until next month.

The Energy Department agreed Thursday to postpone planned shipments to South Carolina until at least June 15 so a judge can hear arguments in the state's lawsuit against the agency.

Gov. Jim Hodges sued the federal agency and Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham last week in an attempt to halt plans to ship tons of weapons-grade surplus plutonium to the Savannah River Site near Aiken for conversion to nuclear reactor fuel.

``Given that the governor has elected to throw this matter into litigation, DOE believes that the best way to avoid an undue delay in shipments is an expedited briefing schedule that will allow the court the opportunity to make an informed decision on the merits of the matter,'' Energy Department spokesman Joe Davis said Thursday.

The first shipments from the former nuclear weapons plant at Rocky Flats outside Denver had been expected to begin later this month. But Hodges fears the conversion program will never be funded and the plutonium will remain in the state indefinitely.

``That's good news for us that they've agreed to delay shipments,'' Hodges said Thursday night. But he added, ``all this does is move from May to June the day of reckoning.''