Despite its ever-closer energy ties with Egypt, Israel intends to collect $1.76 billion awarded by an international arbitration court because Cairo suspended a gas supply contract three years ago. The International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), in papers filed Sunday, said it was directing the Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company and the Egyptian General Petroleum Corp. to pay the compensation to the state-owned Israel Electric Corp. (IEC) for "severe damage" to the Israeli utility. Egypt and Israel had had a 20-year contract, beginning in 2008, under which the two Egyptian energy companies would provide gas to Israel via a pipeline that crossed the Sinai Peninsula. The flow stopped abruptly in 2012 because of several months of attacks on the conduit by militant groups in the area. Related: This Suggests An Oil Price Recovery Might Be On Its Way "The company will collect the sums to which it is entitled according to the arbitration award," the IEC said Sunday as soon as the ICC decision was announced.