Closed in 2022
ADNOC states the refinery was shut down with zero flaring in 2022, and the land has since been repurposed to suit Abu Dhabi's future needs.
Umm Al Nar Island in Abu Dhabi hosted the UAE's first refinery, inaugurated in 1976, which processed up to 85,000 barrels a day at its peak. ADNOC shut it in 2022 and focused its downstream refining and petrochemicals strategy on Ruwais, so current Zone 1 work is elsewhere. Distribution partners for Umm Al Nar (former ADNOC refinery) are being identified ahead of the Q4 2026 launch of the IS-04Z1.
Pre-launch · certification in progress · Launching Q4 2026
Short answer. Umm Al Nar (former ADNOC refinery) has no appointed SAMS distributor yet: the IS-04Z1 is pre-launch (certification in progress, no certificate issued, launch planned for Q4 2026), and distributor applications are open.
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. A buyer's engineering review is separate from the certificate. Certification status. Place facts reviewed October 2026.
| Check | What to look for | IS-04Z1 today |
|---|---|---|
| Ex marking | Group, category, protection concept, gas group, temperature class | II 2 G Ex ib IIC T4 (target) |
| Gas group | IIA, IIB or IIC matched to the area drawing | IIC (target) |
| Temperature class | T-class below the ignition temperature of the gas | T4, 135 °C (target) |
| Where it applies | Umm Al Nar (former ADNOC refinery): Decommissioned refinery process units (former), Site clearance and demolition works, Relocated process units being reassembled elsewhere in the UAE | Classified by the site operator |

An intrinsically safe Android smartphone designed for Zone 1 and Zone 21 hazardous areas in Umm Al Nar Refinery. It is pre-launch: IECEx, ATEX and NEC 500 certification is in progress ahead of the Q4 2026 launch.
Who operates there and which kinds of classified area a handset would meet, from the SAMS site research.
ADNOC states the refinery was shut down with zero flaring in 2022, and the land has since been repurposed to suit Abu Dhabi's future needs.
ADNOC says the refinery's processing units are being refurbished and reassembled at a location within the UAE, where more than 240 specialist staff will be employed.
Umm Al Nar island lies next to the city of Abu Dhabi and has been enlarged by land reclamation and dredging, so the current shoreline differs from the original.
The first archaeological excavations in Abu Dhabi began at Umm Al Nar in 1959, twelve years before the UAE was founded.
UAE handsets need type approval from the federal Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority, and any remaining fuel or gas facility nearby will set its own device rules.
The Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi has run three seasons of fieldwork at the island since 2020, so archaeology and industrial clearance can overlap in time.
“Ex-proof” is shorthand for equipment carrying an explosion-protection marking (the Ex mark) that matches the area it enters. The marking states the protection concept, gas or dust group and temperature class, and it must be backed by a certificate issued by a recognised body, so a phone described as Ex-proof should come with a certificate number you can check.
The IS-04Z1 is designed to carry the marking II 2 G Ex ib IIC T4. That is a target: certification is in progress, no certificate has been issued, and SAMS will publish the certificate numbers when they exist.
In Umm Al Nar (former ADNOC refinery). A marking check on a former refinery would start with whether any zone classification remains active during clearance. Where a decommissioned unit is still being purged or opened, the operator decides the zone, gas group and temperature class. The IS-04Z1 target marking is II 2 G Ex ib IIC T4, still pending certification, so check it against that classification.
Distribution of the IS-04Z1 is by authorised partners only, and SAMS has not yet granted a territory for Umm Al Nar (former ADNOC refinery). Each application is reviewed on its merits. Because opening a certified Ex handset in an ordinary workshop invalidates its certificate, the partner must be able to support and service the device locally.
Not yet. The IS-04Z1 is pre-launch and its certification is still in progress ahead of a Q4 2026 launch. No unit goes into a classified area before the certificate covering it exists. The datasheet, the certification schedule and safe-area evaluation units are available now.
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.
The marking target is II 2 G Ex ib IIC T4. It becomes a marking only when the certificate is issued; until then it is a design target.
Likely candidates are decommissioned refinery process units (former), site clearance and demolition works, relocated process units being reassembled elsewhere in the uae. Which areas are classified, and to what zone, is set by the site operator's own area classification drawings.
Apply through the distributor page with your company details and the territory you cover. SAMS reviews applications company by company and has not yet granted a territory for Umm Al Nar (former ADNOC refinery).
The archaeological site is protected and fenced by a concrete wall of about 1,760 m, and archaeological fieldwork has continued since 2020. Works near it typically need approval and exclusion zones; confirm requirements with the site owner and the authority responsible for heritage.
Refining is concentrated at Ruwais, about 240 km west of the city, where process units, tank farms and jetties operate. For equipment buyers, Ruwais is the relevant site, while the older Umm Al Nar island is mostly a decommissioned and heritage-sensitive location.
ADNOC describes its downstream refining and petrochemicals as concentrated at Ruwais in the Al Dhafra region, and refinery units from Umm Al Nar are being reassembled at another UAE location. A buyer should ask the relevant ADNOC contractor which site the equipment will serve before specifying anything.
More on Umm Al Nar Refinery, and on other places in United Arab Emirates.
Share the site details and quantity. You will get the datasheet and the certification schedule back by email; pricing is indicative only until launch.
Tell us the zone, gas group and operator. We will send the datasheet and the certification schedule.