There's really nothing new here. Folks in the oilpatch know all about the oil sands in northern Alberta. Canada is already the single-largest exporter of crude oil to the United States (yes more than the Saudis). The US gets more crude from the mid-east, but not from one single country.
Higher oil prices have always made the oil sands more attractive and lucrative. It's the reason why Alberta experienced it's booming economy back in the 70's and early 80's when crude prices were high.