Junior economic affairs minister Mona Keijzer has told the Telegraaf that she will look into two recent tender processes for electric buses to make sure they took place in line with the rules.

The minister made the comments after Wim van der Leegte, founder of Dutch electric bus maker VDL, wrote an opinion piece in the Financieele Dagbad criticising the way the orders had gone to Chinese firms.

The decisions, Van der Leegte said, will have structural consequences for Dutch jobs. ‘The 415 new Chinese buses on the Dutch roads represent 800 man years of work,’ Van der Leegte said.

Keijzer told the Telegraaf that she understood his frustration. ‘Is it a question of unfair competition? I don’t know,’ the minister said.

The number of electric buses in the Netherlands more than doubled to 770 this year, and now account for 15% of the Dutch fleet, according to figures from transport institute Crow.

Groningen and Drenthe provinces have most electric buses, and there are none at all in Zeeland and Overijssel.