(The opinions expressed here are those of the author, a

columnist for Reuters.)

By Gavin Maguire

LITTLETON, Colorado, March 25 (Reuters) - When the

missiles and drones eventually stop flying in the U.S.-Israeli

air strikes against Iran, a new contest is likely to get

underway: the scramble for contracts to rebuild damaged oil and

gas infrastructure and restore shipping lanes - and influence -

across the Middle East.

The destruction is not confined to Iran. At least 40 energy

assets across nine countries in the Middle East have been

"severely or very severely" damaged, with oil and gas fields,

refineries and pipelines all expected to take some time to

repair, the International Energy Agency head Fatih Birol warned

on Monday. He described the crisis as worse than the two oil

shocks of the 1970s, as well as the impact of the Russia-Ukraine

war on gas, put together.

From engineering specialists lining up to rebuild smashed

pipelines to logistics firms able to repair bombed-out ports and

terminals, a select group of companies is poised to turn the end

of the conflict into the start of a lucrative boom.

Here's a look at which sectors and companies are potential

candidates to compete for the scores of energy and port

reconstruction projects likely to emerge across the Middle East

once the war finally ends and the cleanup campaign begins.

ENGINEERING CONGLOMERATES

Multinational engineering giants will be among the first

companies called in to Iran once the fighting stops to help

assess the damage and draw up reconstruction plans.

Firms with experience in repairing and constructing oil

rigs, refineries, pipelines and natural gas liquefaction plants

will play a vital role in Iran's recovery and in restoring

revenue flows to the country.

Political affiliations will likely play a role in picking

the ultimate winners, with both the Iranian and U.S. governments

expected to have strong views on how contracts are divvied up.

Even so, after several weeks of steady bombing there should

be plenty of work to go around.

Major U.S. firms with hefty oil and gas engineering and

service arms include SLB (formerly Schlumberger),

Halliburton ( HAL ), Baker Hughes ( BKR ) and Weatherford

, alongside the privately held Bechtel Corp.

On the Iranian side, the Khatam-al Anbiya Construction firm

- controlled by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) -

and the Mapna Group, the country's largest contractor in oil,

gas and power, are the obvious domestic candidates.

International firms including Italy's Saipem,

France's Technip, India's Larsen and Toubro

and Dubai-based Sidara also have extensive operations in the

Middle East, and so will have the contacts and experience needed

to get work underway quickly.

China's state-owned CNPC, United Arab Emirates-based NMDC

and Britain's Petrofac also have a regional presence

and can be expected to compete for bids.

OIL & GAS MAJORS

Once pipelines are patched up and energy infrastructure is

repaired, the world's oil and gas producers will likely look to

step in to resume extraction at well sites and return the

region's refineries and liquefied natural gas plants to full

operation.

National energy firms throughout the region are likely to

feature prominently, including National Iranian Oil Company

(NIOC), QatarEnergy, Saudi Aramco and Abu Dhabi

National Oil Company (ADNOC).

International majors including top U.S. oil producer Exxon

Mobil ( XOM ), France's TotalEnergies and the UK's

Shell also have extensive operations throughout the

Middle East and will look to protect their positions.

The scale of destruction gives some sense of the

opportunity. Israeli strikes hit four units of Iran's South Pars

gas field, while Iranian attacks on Qatar's Ras Laffan

Industrial City caused extensive damage to LNG facilities that

will take years and tens of billions of dollars to restore.

SHIPPING AND UTILITIES

The damage does not stop at the wellhead. Ports, power grids

and water systems across the region have all taken hits,

requiring an equally critical reconstruction effort.

Large ports in and around Iranian waters have sustained

significant damage from recent bombardments, along with scores

of naval and merchant vessels.

The Strait of Hormuz - a narrow chokepoint between Iran and

Oman through which roughly a fifth of the world's crude oil and

LNG passes - has been effectively closed, and reopening it will

be a prerequisite for any return to normal global energy flows.

Restoring port facilities and clearing shipping channels

will require specialists in harbour reconstruction and marine

salvage, with the recovery effort expected to run for years.

On the power side, state-owned Tavanir and the Mapna Group

operate most of Iran's electricity generation and transmission

networks and will anchor the domestic recovery effort.

Russia's Rosatom, which manages Iran's Bushehr nuclear

reactor near recent strike zones, faces a more complex

challenge, given that the Kremlin's role in any U.S.-backed

reconstruction effort is likely to be contested.

Desalination plants supplying clean water in Iran and

Bahrain have also been hit, as have parts of the Israeli

electricity grid, widening the scope of the rebuild well beyond

Iran's borders.

Even if the fighting stopped today, years of reconstruction

work would lie ahead - and when it begins, some companies will

be cleaning up in more ways than one.

(The opinions expressed here are those of the author, a

columnist for Reuters.)

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