Won’t Canadian oil just be exported to other countries after it is refined here? How does that provide the U.S. with any economic benefit?

Answer:

Currently, more than 90 percent of the on-road transportation fuel refined in the United States is used in America. The less than 10 percent of on-road motor fuel that is exported consists primarily of heavier products that aren’t in high demand here. There’s no evidence this ratio will change with increased supplies of oil sands crude.

U.S. refineries are among the best in the world at handling heavy crude oils, like those from Canada. Their ability to produce a variety of products from a barrel of oil―gasoline, diesel, heating oil, bunker fuel and more―benefits U.S. workers and U.S. trade. Here’s how: First, it helps protect U.S. refining jobs, because exported products are still being produced in U.S. refineries―and therefore providing U.S. workers with jobs. Second, petroleum exports―just like exports of steel, ethanol, grains and machinery―help maintain the country’s trade balance.