Offshore support hub
The city is home to Petrobras' Campos Basin operations and, per local sources, over 3,500 oil and gas companies.
Macae is a city in the north of Rio de Janeiro state, known as Brazil's national oil capital. It is the operational base for the Campos Basin, with Petrobras facilities, offshore service companies, the Imbetiba port and an airport used for flights to offshore platforms. If you are specifying an ATEX and IECEx smartphone for Macae, this page covers the markings, the approvals and the current certification status of the IS-04Z1.
Pre-launch · certification in progress · Launching Q4 2026
Short answer. The SAMS IS-04Z1 is the intrinsically safe smartphone covered here for Macae: pre-launch, designed for Zone 1 and Zone 21 (marking target Ex ib IIC T4), with certification in progress and no certificate issued.
Status: pre-launch. IECEx, ATEX, UKEX and NEC 500 certification is in progress and no certificate has been issued; launch is planned for Q4 2026. Operator approval runs on its own timeline. Certification status. Place facts reviewed October 2026.
| Check | What to look for | IS-04Z1 today |
|---|---|---|
| Marking | II 2 G Ex ib IIC T4 on the rating plate | Design target; not yet marked |
| EU-type examination certificate | Notified body number and certificate ID | In progress with TÜV; not issued |
| IECEx certificate of conformity | Number listed on the IECEx online register | In progress; not issued |
| Where it applies | Macae: Offshore supply bases and quays, Heliport and fuel storage, Workshops handling offshore equipment | Classified by the site operator |

An intrinsically safe Android smartphone designed for Zone 1 and Zone 21 hazardous areas in Macaé. It is pre-launch: IECEx, ATEX and NEC 500 certification is in progress ahead of the Q4 2026 launch.
The companies on site and the hazardous-area types a handset is likely to meet there.
The city is home to Petrobras' Campos Basin operations and, per local sources, over 3,500 oil and gas companies.
With so many contractors based locally, equipment is often bought, prepared and serviced here before shipment offshore.
A new 1,410 metre runway, a roughly R$220 million investment by the airport concessionaire Zurich Airport Brasil, is being built to let larger aircraft use the airport.
Part of the Central Rio de Janeiro Atlantic Forest Mosaic and the Uniao Biological Reserve lie in the municipality, which adds environmental permitting around rural and coastal projects.
The 2022 census recorded 246,391 residents over about 1,217 km2, and the city is building a reputation for technical education, with UFRJ and UFF among the institutions teaching there.
Benedito Lacerda Airport has scheduled flights but is mainly used to concentrate operations to offshore platforms, so helicopter transfers are part of daily working life.
ATEX is the European legal framework for equipment used in explosive atmospheres (Directive 2014/34/EU). IECEx is the international certification scheme built on the IEC 60079 standards. Buyers outside Europe often ask for both: an IECEx certificate is the technical evidence most national regimes build on, while ATEX is the legal route into the European market.
For the IS-04Z1 both routes are in progress with TÜV in Germany and neither certificate has been issued. The marking target is II 2 G Ex ib IIC T4: equipment Group II (surface industry), Category 2 (Zone 1 gas), protection concept ib (intrinsic safety), gas group IIC and temperature class T4.
In Macae. Macae is where offshore equipment is prepared before it goes to the Campos Basin, so reviewers at Petrobras facilities and service companies will ask for certificate evidence early. A dual ATEX and IECEx route is designed to help international offshore service firms. The IS-04Z1 has no certificate yet.
A short checklist for anyone writing or reviewing the specification, with the IS-04Z1 status against each point.
No. Nothing can be bought or taken into a classified area today: certification is in progress and launch is planned for Q4 2026. What is available now is the datasheet, the written certification schedule and evaluation units for safe-area use.
No price is published. While certification is in progress there is no list price and no committed lead time, and a supplier quoting a firm figure for an uncertified Ex handset is promising something it cannot stand behind. Indicative pre-launch pricing is issued in writing against a stated quantity and site.
Not yet. Both routes are in progress with TÜV in Germany and no certificate has been issued. Any listing that says otherwise is wrong.
Likely candidates are offshore supply bases and quays, heliport and fuel storage, workshops handling offshore equipment, onshore oil and gas handling. Which areas are classified, and to what zone, is set by the site operator's own area classification drawings.
Not exactly. Explosion proof is a broad everyday term; intrinsic safety is one protection concept, which limits energy so ignition cannot occur. Flameproof (Ex d) is a different concept that contains an explosion. The IS-04Z1 is intrinsically safe by design.
Helicopter operators and platform owners set rules for batteries, radios and phones, and they differ. Typically devices are checked at the heliport and may need to be stowed or switched off. Confirm with the operator and heliport safety desk before travel.
Petrobras placed its Campos Basin base there and the airport concentrates helicopter transfers to platforms. More than 4,000 companies are registered, so servicing, storage and training are nearby. Confirm freight, customs and storage arrangements with a local logistics company.
Parts of it are, such as supply bases and quays, heliport fuel storage, workshops handling offshore equipment and onshore oil and gas handling, but it is a support city rather than a production site. Confirm the classification of each facility with its operator.
More on Macaé, and on other places in Brazil.
Tell us what you need to equip and where. The SAMS team answers by email with the datasheet and where each certification route stands.
Send the zone and gas group of your site and we will reply with the datasheet and schedule.