BEIJING (AFP) - Local governments in China are at risk of defaulting on loan repayments, state media said Thursday, following a state-sanctioned lending binge in 2009 aimed at boosting economic growth. The warning from the director of the National Audit Office highlights growing concerns among senior leaders over excessive borrowing by local governments to fund infrastructure and other projects. Some authorities have taken on more debt than they will be able to cover with their earnings, chief auditor Liu Jiayi was quoted by the China Daily as saying. The ratio of debt to annual fiscal revenues exceeded 100 percent in seven provinces, 10 cities and 14 counties, with the highest level reaching 365 percent, the Global Times said without naming the areas. The scale is large and the burden is quite heavy, Liu said after releasing an audit of the governments 2009 budget. An audit of 18 provinces, 16 cities and 36 counties found total government debt reached 2.79 trillion yuan (410 billion dollars) at the end of 2009. Of that, 1.04 trillion yuan, or 37 percent of the total, was racked up last year. Local government debt around the country could be between six trillion and 11 trillion yuan, the paper said, citing previous estimates by analysts. The debt mountain has sparked anxiety in Beijing of a European-style funding crisis that could potentially derail the worlds third-largest economy. The State Council, or cabinet, warned this month of the risks from lending to financial vehicles set up by local authorities to fund new roads, bridges and other projects. In April, the nations banking watchdog reportedly ordered banks to review their loans to local government investment firms and submit assessments by the end of this month. China has powered out of the global financial crisis on the back of a four-trillion-yuan stimulus package and state-backed bank lending that saw loans nearly double to 9.6 trillion yuan in 2009. The government has implemented a wide range of measures to cool lending and set a loan target of 7.5 trillion yuan for this year.