The Newfoundland and Labrador government says it will cost nearly $6 million to fix a laid-up ferry that was built nearly a half-century ago.

Last week, Transportation Minister Al Hawkins told CBC News that a tender to fix the Sound of Islay is valued at $3.5 million.

But in a press release issued Tuesday, the province put the overall projected cost of repairs at $5.96 million.

Department of Transportation officials indicated that the extra $2.5 million is "for any other work that may be required to have the vessel returned to service."

Feds funding one-third of cost

Ottawa is footing one-third of the overall repair bill — a contribution of up to $1.98 million.

"With the federal funding that we have now, it really does make business sense for us to move forward on that," Hawkins said last week.

The Sound of Islay has been out of service since the fall of 2015, when a Transport Canada inspector found "major areas" of the underwater hull in excess of 25 per cent deterioration. That is the regulatory limit.

Initial estimates at the time pegged the cost of repairs at $5 million.

Transportation Minister Al Hawkins says federal assistance to help fix the Sound of Islay means "it really does make business sense for us to move forward on that" work. (Sherry Vivian/CBC)

According to Tuesday's provincial press release, the planned work on the Sound of Islay "involves replacing approximately 210 square metres of deteriorated steel to improve the structural capacity of the underwater hull, widening passageways and modifying facilities to improve accessibility, and installing a new electrical switchboard to increase electrical reliability on board."

Last week, Hawkins said repairs are expected to take five to seven months.

The Sound of Islay, once certified as seaworthy, will rejoin the provincial fleet as a swing vessel.

Swing vessels fill in for other ferries that are out of service, for either scheduled or unscheduled repairs.

The government says it is the only ship in the intra-provincial ferry fleet that can operate out of all 24 ports on the island.