"Oil refining is a volatile, low-margin business, they say, and it's far cheaper and much simpler to export crude to countries that already have refineries ready and willing to process it, particularly the United States and China.
"It gets a lot of points to say, 'We've got to do things at home, we've got to be independent, we ought to not depend on somebody who could change their mind,' but as an economic matter, it doesn't really make sense, or we would have been doing it," says Michal Moore, a professor at the University of Calgary's public policy school.
"My guess is that under current circumstances ... that ship probably has sailed."
"Building a new refinery would be a long and expensive proposition. Such a facility would cost billions of dollars and likely take a decade to obtain the necessary government approvals and build, says Moore."
It's more complicated to export refined products, rather than simply exporting raw crude, because every jurisdiction has different standards for fuels to meet, says Greg Stringham of the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers.
"Most refineries usually refine close to their market because of the gasoline and fuel specifications in each of those areas," says Stringham.
"So that's why it leans to, let's move the crude around."