Egypt’s Dolphinus Holdings has signed a deal worth $15bn to buy 64 billion cubic metres of Israeli gas.

The gas will be supplied from Israel’s Tamar and Leviathan reservoirs and bought from US-based Nobel Energy and Israel’s Delek Drilling.

Half of the gas will be supplied from each field and the proceeds will be split evenly between the two companies.

Israeli energy minister Yuval Steinitz has called the agreement the most significant deal with Egypt since the two countries signed their historic peace treaty in 1979.

The deal still needs regulatory and government approval in both Israel and Egypt.

The agreement could potentially set the scene for exports of Israeli gas to an Egyptian liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal that is operated by Anglo-Dutch Shell.

Noble and Delek Drilling control 85 percent of Leviathan, with the rest held by Israel-based Ratio Oil Exploration.

Nobel and Delek Drilling also both hold stakes in Tamar. They are joined in Tamar by Isramco Negev, Tamar Petroleum - a spin-off of Delek - and two other small partners.

The Tel Aviv Stock Exchange Oil & Gas Index jumped 19 percent after the deal was announced Monday, the most on record.

Commenting on the deal Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said: “This will put billions into the state treasury to benefit the education, health and social welfare of Israel’s citizens.”

Previously, Cairo had frozen talks on the gas deal after an international arbitration court ruled Egyptian companies must compensate Israeli electricity providers for a past deal that soured.

It is not yet clear if the two sides have resolved the arbitration case.

Improved relations between Egypt and Israel may mean a pipeline between Israel and Turkey is less likely.

It is not yet decided how the gas will be transported between Israel and Egypt.

Two existing pipelines between the countries are possible options.