Even as competitors scout shale gas acreage in places as distant as South Africa, Anadarko Petroleum Corp. is sticking to the United States, citing barriers to entering international markets.

While opportunities exist, Anadarko is not pursuing shale gas acreage in other countries, Bob Daniels, Anadarko’s exploration chief, told investors on the company’s earnings conference call on Tuesday.

“The real difficulty right now is the fiscal terms and the cost structure in these other, more remote locations,” Daniels said. “You have to have a market to sell the gas into, and you have to have infrastructure.”

Drilling for natural gas trapped in rock like shale was pioneered in the United States. Technology like hydraulic fracturing, where rocks are cracked open to release gas, allows companies to tap vast supplies of the cleaner-burning fuel.

Encouraged by North American results, companies including Exxon Mobil Corp, Chesapeake Energy Corp  and its partner Statoil ASA are looking around the world for other unconventional gas plays.

Anadarko is looking for natural gas in U.S. formations including the Marcellus Shale in Appalachia and the Eagle Ford Shale in south Texas.

For the rest of the story visit, Anadarko staying with domestic shale gas for now