A senior official has said a particularly black week in Phnom Penh's long

history of power problems should end today with the completion of repair work on

a power station.

Chea Sin Hel of Electricite du Cambodge said that the

power had been reduced by half in the capital's chronically overloaded

generating system since Sunday while the work was carried out on the Power

Station Number Two.

He said that large areas have been blacked out because

the stations lines of distribution are widespread. The government warned the

city's population in advance over television and radio.

Lowered river

levels and channel silting have reduced the water available to Power Plant No.

2's steam generators, which are some of the largest in the city, producing 10

mega watts 24 hours a day.

Phnom Penh's three other power stations

produce total mega-wattage that varies from as low as 3.7 MW during the day, to

as much as 10.7 MW at night. Day-time highs are 5.8 MW and night-time lows are

6.3 MW. All figures represent average total output of Phnom Penh's Power Station

Numbers One, Three and Four, according to Chea Sin Hel, Chief of Distribution at

EDC.

Water was pumped from the river at Power Station Number Two in order

to blast silt from the intake channel, Chea said. The silt has reduced the

efficiency of the generator and helped contribute to the city's power supply

problems