Government is taking steps to sell off two ageing ferryboats in its fleet of public vessels — nine years after they were withdrawn from full-time service.Tenders are being invited for the boats Patience and Deliverance, which were built in 1986 and ferried passengers between Somerset and Hamilton for almost 20 years.In 2003, then-Transport Minister Ewart Brown announced that the two public transport workhorses were to be replaced by new, high-tech $2.5 million catamarans, which duly arrived the following April.However, rather than being sent straight to the scrapyard, the boats remained in use on an occasional basis on the Somerset/Hamilton and Paget/Warwick routes up until two years ago, when, according to a Marine & Ports spokesman, “required safety standards were no longer sustainable in economic terms”.A Government advertisement announcing the tender of the ferries, which are currently anchored in waters off Morgan’s Point, has now been published.“Both the Deliverance and Patience are almost 30 years old and are beyond economical repair in passenger safety terms,” the spokesman said.“Therefore the department has asked for proposals from interested parties and will make a determination once all proposals have been received and reviewed.”The advert notes that the two vessels — which are identical in design — are 75ft long with a beam of 21ft.They have steel monohull hulls and aluminium cabin structures. Deliverance is sold with the addition of two Detroit Diesel 71 series engines.The advert states that repairs “may be required” and adds that the vessels are to be sold “on an ‘as is, where is’ basis”.Bids should be submitted by Thursday, April 4, and successful tenderers will be responsible for removing their purchases at their own expense.