Egypt will base its appeal on a ruling to compensate the Eastern Mediterranean Gas (EMG) Company and Israel Electric Corp (IEC) on the lack of jurisdiction for the International Chamber of Commerce according the contract signed between the parties, former EGAS chairman Mohamed Shoeb told Al-Shorouk newspaper in an interview published on Monday.

Egypt had announced earlier this month that it will appeal a ruling by the Geneva-based International Chamber of Commerce to compensate IEC and EMG with $1.7 billion and $288 million, respectively, plus interest and legal expenses, according to a statement by the petroleum ministry.

The contract signed between EGAS, EGPC and EMG stipulates that the jurisdiction of arbitration lies with the Cairo Regional Centre for International Commercial Arbitration, Shoeb, who chaired EGAS at the time of stopping supplies to EMG and IEC, told Al-Shorouk.

IEC and EMG resorted to international arbitration after 2012 attacks on the gas pipeline in North Sinai stopped the flow of gas they were receiving according to a 20-year agreement signed with Egypt in 2005.

IEC demanded a compensation of $3.8 billion and EMG, which oversaw the deal, demanded $1.5 billion, the statement read.

According to Shoeb, gas supplies to both companies stopped after EMG had delayed its payments, leading the Egyptian government to resort to the Cairo Regional Centre for International Commercial Arbitration in April 2012 in a case that has not been ruled on yet.