KAMPONG SAOM

also spelled Kompong Som, formerly Sihanoukville, a new town and principal deepwater port of southern Cambodia, situated on a peninsula of the Gulf of Thailand. The port is connected with Phnom Penh, the national capital, by two major highways. It was first opened to ocean traffic in 1956; initial facilities were capable of handling simultaneously four 10,000-ton vessels, and additional facilities were added later. By 1966 the town had schools, parks, hospitals, nearly 50 miles (80 km) of streets, and a population of 14,000. By 1967 a major stage of the 163-mile (263-kilometre) rail link to Phnom Penh had been completed. Before 1975 the port had an industrial park, with a petroleum refinery (1968) and storage tanks, a tractor factory, a fish-processing plant, a truck-assembly plant, and a brewery. Principal exports included rice, corn (maize), and rubber; imports included petroleum products, iron and steel, chemicals, machines, and metal products. There is a major airfield nearby. Pop. (1987 est.) 16,000.