I'm not sure I have your question right, but the gist of your point is that although less bitumen on a percentage basis is being upgraded here--you are correct--more bitumen has been upgraded. In fact, I'll just comment about Syncrude. Syncrude, which is the largest mining project, does not sell a single barrel of bitumen. We upgrade every single barrel that we sell. Suncor is very close to that kind of status, as is Canadian Natural, as is Shell. So the mining projects, by and large, upgrade most of their production; and when I say most, it's 90% or more, and some of those are very new projects. So it has increased on an absolute-barrel basis.
So as bitumen has increased its flow into the U.S. and into U.S. upgraders, we have not lost any jobs in the province. In fact, all of the production that has been growing has increased jobs in general.
What I would agree with is that we certainly would have more jobs in Canada if there were more upgrading happening here, but I think the money you would spend to create those jobs would exceed the benefit of actually paying those workers. So I think the right economic decision is being made during this period of time when the differentials, the price for an upgraded barrel versus the price for bitumen--which is the real driver in this----are very close.
So there's not much profit to be made in upgrading, which is why people don't want to get into that business. If that differential changed and went back to historic levels, you would see upgraders built in Canada again in the future, and that's what really drives that economic choice.