Potential losses from the government's rice-pledging scheme for four crops could exceed 300 billion baht, based on the accounting method of the Finance Ministry's subcommittee overseeing the programme's accounting.
The estimate includes all expenses related to the programme before subtracting the amount received from selling rice in the government's stockpiles, a ministry source said.
Expenses include milling, storage fees, the 3% interest rate charged by the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives on loans to fund the programme, the source said.
The Yingluck Shinawatra administration commenced the scheme from the 2011-12 main harvest crop to fulfil its promises during the general election campaign in 2011.
However, losses of about 260 billion baht estimated by the subcommittee for the previous three rice crops and the current second crop through last month have become a political hot potato.
The Commerce Ministry has played down losses from the scheme, saying they are lower than that figure but declining to give an amount.
Of the estimated 260 billion baht in losses, 42.9 billion came from the 2011-12 main crop, 93.9 million from the 2012 second crop, 84 billion from the 2012-13 main crop and the remaining 40 billion from 10-billion-baht losses in each month from February to May.
The government is running the scheme for the 2013 second crop, under which 7 million tonnes are expected to be bought. The second crop runs until the end of September.
The Pheu Thai Party-led coalition government buys paddy at a guaranteed price of 15,000 baht per tonne and Hom Mali at 20,000 baht a tonne, 40-50% higher than global market prices.
The source urged the Commerce Ministry not to conceal the project's expenses and claimed the ministry has tried to avoid adding expenses to losses.
Storage fees run 20 billion baht per year, the source said.
The source said the Commerce Ministry's policy of mixing old and new rice means new rice is sold at a lower price than it should be.