Refining scale
ADNOC rates Ruwais Refinery East at over 922,000 barrels a day, making it the world's fourth-largest single-site refinery; Ruwais Refinery West, opened in 2014, is rated at up to 417,000 barrels a day.
Ruwais, in Al Dhannah on Abu Dhabi's western coast, hosts ADNOC's refining complex, the UAE's only natural gas liquids fractionation plant and the Borouge polyolefins plants. The TA'ZIZ chemicals zone is being developed alongside them, adding new classified areas. This page explains what to look for in an ATEX and IECEx smartphone for Ruwais industrial complex, and where the IS-04Z1 stands against that list today.
Pre-launch · certification in progress · Launching Q4 2026
Short answer. The SAMS IS-04Z1 is the intrinsically safe smartphone covered here for Ruwais industrial complex: 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. An operator's own vendor approval is a separate step. 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 | Ruwais industrial complex: Refinery process units, NGL fractionation, Polyolefin plants | Classified by the site operator |

An intrinsically safe Android smartphone designed for Zone 1 and Zone 21 hazardous areas in Ruwais Petrochemical. 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.
ADNOC rates Ruwais Refinery East at over 922,000 barrels a day, making it the world's fourth-largest single-site refinery; Ruwais Refinery West, opened in 2014, is rated at up to 417,000 barrels a day.
TA'ZIZ plans 4.7 million tonnes a year of chemicals by the end of 2028; a dedicated chemicals port is scheduled for completion in the fourth quarter of 2026, and a 27-year utilities agreement with TAQA was announced in January 2026. These are plans, not completed facilities.
UAE mobile phones are type-approved by the Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority, which has added advanced mobile location testing to mandatory phone tests.
The industrial and housing complex was planned in the 1970s around the Ruwais Refinery and inaugurated in 1982; a hydrocracker was added in 1985, so units span several decades.
The Ruwais Housing Complex covers 6 square km and sits 10 km from the plants, with its own shops, schools, banks, mosques and clinic, so most staff commute each day.
The housing complex has grown beyond oil and gas staff to include government workers on nearby projects such as the Barakah nuclear power plant.
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 Ruwais industrial complex. Ruwais combines ADNOC's refining complex, NGL fractionation and Borouge's polyolefin plants, so a reviewer would expect certificate numbers, markings and schedules of conditions for devices in Zone 1 process units. A dual ATEX and IECEx route also helps contractors working across ADNOC, Borouge and TA'ZIZ projects. The IS-04Z1 certificates are in progress.
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.
SAMS has not published a price. Any figure you are offered for an uncertified Ex phone should be treated with caution; written indicative pricing is available for a defined 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 refinery process units, ngl fractionation, polyolefin plants, marine jetties and fuel pipelines. 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.
Ruwais, or Al Dhannah, is 240 km west of Abu Dhabi city, so visiting teams normally travel by road for several hours or stay locally. The housing complex is 10 km from the plants, so plan daily transfer and gate times.
Mostly in the Ruwais Housing Complex, which covers about 6 square km and is 10 km from the industrial plants, with shops, schools and a clinic. Some government workers on nearby projects also live there, so gate and transport times can be busy.
Ruwais is hot and humid, and salt air affects outdoor equipment. The IS-04Z1 is designed to IP68 with a 4,000 mAh battery, but no heat or salt limits have been published. Ask for the datasheet and agree outdoor-use conditions with the operator.
Other guides for Ruwais Petrochemical, other places in United Arab Emirates, and the pages behind them.
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.