town in the central southern panhandle of Laos, on the left bank of the Mekong River. It had a teacher-training school (1911), a public high school (1946), a Buddhist secondary school, a trade school, and the Savannakhét Technical College before the 1975 communist takeover. Industries in the town included manufacturing of soft drinks, ice making, and a sawmill. There is an airport, and a road originating in Savannakhét town links Muang Phalan and Muang Xépôn (Sépone) to Hue in southern Vietnam. Pop. (1985) town, 96,652.