International arbitrators have ordered Egyptian gas companies Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company (EGAS) and the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) to pay US$1.76bn in compensation to Israel's national power utility Israel Electric Corp (IEC) for having interrupted gas supplies in 2012; Egypt has announced that it would appeal the decision.
In 2012, Egyptian gas supplies to Israel under a 20-year agreement were suspended after attacks on the Eastern Mediterranean Gas pipeline by militant groups in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula; IEC had to turn to more expensive fuels to generate electricity and demanded US$4bn in compensation to EGAS, EGPC and to EMG, the firm operating the pipeline.
Egyptian companies announced they will freeze negotiations on gas imports from Israeli fields (under a November 2015 agreement, Egypt's Dolphinus Holdings plans to import up to 4 bcm/year of gas from Israel's Leviathan offshore gas field over 10 to 15 years) "until the legal position regarding the arbitration ruling and the results of the appeal are clear".