Samsung Heavy Industries Co., the world's third-biggest shipbuilder by order backlog, is considering issuing shares to raise funds amid an extended industry slump, the company said Thursday.

"We are mulling over a capital increase as part of our self-rescue programs. But the size and the timeframe for the rights issue are not decided yet," the company said in a regulatory filing.

The size of the capital increase will be decided in late June after its main creditor Korea Development Bank completes its review of Samsung Heavy's restructuring efforts, an official at the Financial Services Commission said. 

Samsung Heavy has recently submitted its self-help plan to the state-run KDB to raise 1.5 trillion won ($1.3 billion) by cutting jobs and selling output facilities and non-core assets by 2018.

In the 2016-2018 period, the company is expected to win an average of $5.5 billion per year in new orders. It is sharply down from average annual orders worth $11 billion for the past six years from 2010-2015, according to government data.

As of March, Samsung Heavy carried $30.2 billion in order backlog, following Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co.'s$41.4 billion and Hyundai Heavy Industries Co.'s $36.7 billion, the data showed.

On Wednesday, creditor banks approved the self-rescue plans worth a combined 10.35 trillion won presented by Hyundai Heavy, Samsung Heavy and Daewoo Shipbuilding, the world's top three shipbuilders.  (Yonhap)