UPDATE - Iraq auctions off three major gas fields

* Third auction since U.S.-led invasion of Iraq

* Kogas, Kuwait Energy, TPAO, Kazakhs win gas fields

* Iraq hopes to gain global weight as major producer

(Adds details, analyst quotes)

By Rania El Gamal and Ahmed Rasheed

BAGHDAD, Oct 20 (Reuters) - Iraq auctioned three major natural gas fields to foreign companies on Wednesday as it seeks to shake off a legacy of war, bolster its standing as an energy giant and break into the lucrative global gas market.

Global energy executives braved lingering violence and political uncertainty to attend the auction in Baghdad, the third bidding round since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion, but Western companies either did not compete or failed to win.

In the previous two energy auctions last year, Iraq sold contracts to develop some of its biggest oilfields, setting the stage for its crude output capacity to quadruple to Saudi levels of 12 million barrels per day if everything goes to plan.

Wednesday's gas auction kicked off with South Korea's Kogas and Kazakhstan's KazMunaiGas Exploration & Production winning a deal to develop the largest of the three, Akkas gas field in the Sunni heartland of western Iraq.

Kuwait Energy and Turkey's TPAO won the bid for Siba gas field in Iraq's relatively peaceful southern oil hub of Basra, while TPAO, Kuwait Energy and Kogas won the third gas field, Mansuriyah, near the Iranian border in volatile Diyala province.

The only Western company to bid was French major Total. Analysts said Iraq's lack of gas infrastructure and security concerns kept other big global names away.

"There are a couple of uncertainties when it comes to Iraq such as the infrastructure, political situation and the situation of Iraq's gas industry in terms of technological innovation," said Cuneyt Kazokoglu, an analyst at JBC Energy.

"So because of these the interest is rather limited."

Major violence has abated from the peak of sectarian bloodshed three years ago, but foreign oil companies still face shaky security in a country struggling to tame a stubborn Islamist insurgency.

The winning bidders also have to build almost non-existing gas infrastructure and a pipeline network from scratch and brave the risks of operating in violent areas where some provincial opposition against the auction is already ramping up.

Iraq says the gas will be used to generate electricity domestically and as feedstock for industry, but some firms are also hoping to export to neighbouring countries.

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