South Korea's major shipbuilders, led by Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co., are expected to rack up a record loss this year due mainly to increased costs from a delay in the construction of offshore facilities, industry sources said Wednesday.

The combined operating loss by the country's big three shipyards -- Daewoo Shipbuilding, Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. and Samsung Heavy Industries Co. -- is estimated at 7.8 trillion won ($6.86 billion) for the year, they said.

Daewoo Shipbuilding is expected to log an operating loss of 5.3 trillion won, with Hyundai Heavy and Samsung Heavy suffering operating losses of 1.15 trillion won and 1.4 trillion won, respectively.

It would mark the first time the top three shipyards have suffered operating losses on an annual basis, they said.

Daewoo Shipbuilding has an accumulated operating loss of 4.3 trillion won in the first nine months of the year, as it reflected increased losses from a delay in building drill ships and offshore plants and order cancellations.

Last year, Hyundai Heavy logged an operating loss of 3.2 trillion won.

Under the current quarter, the shipyards are expected to suffer additional losses as the industry faces a protracted slump.

Industry sources said the local shipbuilders are likely to see an improvement in their bottom lines starting in the second half of 2016. (Yonhap)