Brisbane residents could see their rates rise more than usual in June if the new Queensland Treasurer does not agree to the state's bank lending Queensland Urban Utilities $1.49 billion.
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In 2010 Brisbane City Council and four other councils loaned QUU a combined $1.49 billion in order to create the organisation and have it run their water and sewerage services.
As QUU's biggest backer, BCC's share of the loan was $1.241 billion.
Now it needs the money back.
Having the loan repaid would reduce the city's debt from $1411 per resident in 2014-15 to $952 per resident in 2016-17.
However, in order for QUU to repay its debt to the councils, it must get a loan from Queensland Treasury Corporation.
For the past 12 months BCC has been part of tense negotiations to make that happen.
The final paperwork was sent to Queensland's previous treasurer Tim Nicholls in December 2014, but the final agreement could not be signed before the recent state election.
BCC is worried because it has begun preliminary work on its 2015-16 budget thinking the loan would be repaid.
In his 2015 budget speech Lord Mayor Graham Quirk said the loan repayment was "critically important" to the city's future success.
"This arrangement... will exit council from the obligations and costs of acting as a bank for Queensland Urban Utilities and we can continue to focus on our core role of service delivery to the suburbs," Cr Quirk said.
The council's Finance, Economic Development and Administration chairman Julian Simmonds said everyone was waiting on a decision from new state Treasurer Curtis Pitt.
"Brisbane, with the support of other local councils, negotiated the terms of the agreement with State Treasury, QTC and QUU," Cr Simmonds said.
"All parties are in support of the agreed terms and it is now with the Treasurer awaiting his sign-off.
"...Brisbane provided QUU with a $1.241 billion loan at its establishment which council, in turn, funded from borrowings from Queensland Treasury Corporation."
"...Under this arrangement, QUU will be appropriately responsible for its own borrowings and borrow its funds directly from QTC.
"They could repay its existing debt to council, enabling us to reduce our borrowings."
Details of the planned new loan agreement were sent to Under Treasurer Mark Gray on December 15, who forwarded the detailed information to then treasurer Tim Nicholls, he said.
A spokeswoman for Mr Nicholls said the former treasurer remembered agreeing to the negotiations proceeding, but was unable to sign the formal paperwork before the election.
Cr Simmonds said BCC had subsequently raised the important issue with Mr Pitt.
"The Lord Mayor wrote to Mr Pitt last month to advise him that council is keen to minimise the costs to ratepayers by discontinuing its role as a defacto banker for QUU," he said.
A spokesman for Mr Pitt said they were aware of the letter from Cr Quirk.
"The Treasurer will consider the request from the Lord Mayor," a spokesman said on Wednesday night.
A spokeswoman for Queensland's Urban Utilities said the negotiations were with Queensland Treasury.
