But after months of number-crunching at the Guildhall, the authority last night confirmed the event lost £177,000, a massive £102,000 more than expected.

The bill has left planning for next year’s event up in the air, with the leader of the authority, Councillor Tony Woods (Lib Dem, St Davids) admitting he cannot guarantee whether it will go ahead or not.

He said: “We’re going to have to review everything, so I’m not saying it definitely will be held, I’m not saying it won’t and I’m not saying it will be exactly the same as it was.

“But we will make sure anything we do put on will be good value and a good day’s entertainment.”

The council leader said unexpected costs, such as a rain-soaked Racecourse venue, helped add to the festival’s overspend.

He also said the event, which should celebrate its 20th anniversary next year, could be radically changed if it is held in 2009.

Possible changes could include moving some events to other parts of the town, including options such as the Market Square.

He said: “One of the major problems is, it costs nearly £360,000 before we even put anything on, that’s just for setting up a showground.

“So we need to look at how we can change what we’re doing to reduce costs. If we can do that then we can have a more successful event,” he added.

The Balloon Festival last year lost taxpayers a total of £160,000. At the time, the loss was believed to be the biggest in the event’s history.

Last year’s loss was announced after the council introduced a controversial £4 entrance charge to the event for the first time.

It also came after the event was blighted by bad weather, in contrast to this year’s event which saw surprisingly good weather and included a number of popular pop acts, including singer Rick Astley.