China's Ministry of Finance has penalized five renewable energy vehicle producers for illegally obtaining government subsidies, amounting to about 1 billion yuan ($150 million).

The five companies include Suzhou Gemsea, Higer Bus, Wuzhoulong Motors, Mychery Bus and Shaolin Bus. The companies reportedly accumulated a total of 1.01 billion yuan in subsidies in 2015 after claiming to have sold 3,547 vehicles that were actually either unfinished or unsold.

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These five companies primarily make buses. One of the companies is a subsidiary of Chery Holding, the owner of the seventh most popular Chinese passenger car brand.

The ministry said the five companies would return the illegally gained subsidies. They would also be fined and disqualified for subsidies in 2016. The ministry has fined the five companies amounts equal to 50 percent of the subsidies they are accused of fraudulently receiving.

Gemsea has the most serious violations and would be removed from the country's list of automakers, according to the Wall Street Journal. The company reportedly fabricated its entire electric-vehicle-manufacturing business and did not make alternative-energy vehicles. The other four of the bus-making companies abused the subsidy program by padding their reported electric-vehicle sales.

“Individual companies seeking profit violated relevant laws to cheat and fraudulently obtain financial subsidies, seriously disrupting the market order, violating the legitimate interests of firms that honor the law in researching, developing and manufacturing new energy vehicles,” the ministry said in a statement.

The announcement comes as the Chinese government has intensified efforts to support the use of new energy vehicles.

In 2015, the Chinese government spent a total of 90 billion yuan (over $13 billion) in the sector, including direct cash subsidies for electric-vehicle makers and construction of public charging stations. Government data show that sales of electric and hybrid cars and buses quadrupled in 2015 from the previous year to 331,000 vehicles, China Daily reported. It is unclear how many of those reported sales may be false.

Tagschina, China's Ministry of Finance, new energy vehicle maker, Subsidy Fraud, Gemsea, Higer Bus, Wuzhoulong Motors, Mychery Bus, Shaolin Bus, China energy vehicle Subsidy Fraud