The government of Nova Scotia has introduced legislation to ensure that the Canadian province reaps financial benefits from the country’s first offshore wind projects.

Under the so-called Offshore Renewable Energy Act, project developers will be required to pay an annual levy of CAD 7,000 ($5,120) per MW produced for each of the first 10 years of commercial operations.

Nova Scotia, which has yet to issue a call for bids, has set a goal to produce 5GW in a first phase, which would mean the province would earn about CAD 35m ($25.6m) annually from the levy.

After the first 10 years, the province would have the option to continue the CAD 7,000 levy or choose to make more money by applying a percentage-based levy on each project’s gross revenue.

Provincial officials say the government is currently considering a 4% levy, which at current electricity prices would translate into about CAD 100m ($73.1m) annually for the province.

The government also stated that all electricity produced by the first offshore turbines would be exported to other markets rather than sold to Nova Scotia.

“There’s a needle to be threaded there because we don’t want to be too aggressive on that. Asking too much could scare developers away. But we also want to send a message that our expectation is that there’s a direct benefit for Nova Scotians,” said Tim Houston, the premier of Nova Scotia.

Not everyone was thrilled with the decision. Namely, NDP Leader Claudia Chender claimed the government is too focused on selling energy to the US, referring to a recent memorandum of understanding signed with Massachusetts.

“Not to help us with our own energy needs, not to help us with our own energy bills, not to help us with our climate commitments. The least we could expect is to have government revenue that will help us pay for services,” she stated.