Refinery status
The refinery has been shut and restarted repeatedly since 2025, and NNPC signed a memorandum with Chinese firms in April 2026 on restart plans; confirm current status first.
Warri is an oil hub in Delta State, hosting the Warri Refinery and Petrochemicals at Ekpan and Ubeji, many international oil company offices and a seaport. Chevron's Escravos gas plant and gas-to-liquids plant lie in the western Niger Delta. Distribution partners for Warri are being identified ahead of the Q4 2026 launch of the IS-04Z1.
Pre-launch · certification in progress · Launching Q4 2026
Short answer. Warri 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.
Where things stand: the IS-04Z1 has not launched, and none of its four certification routes has produced a certificate yet. Operator approval runs on its own timeline. 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 | Warri: Refinery process units, Gas plants and gas-to-liquids facilities, Seaport and jetty fuel handling | Classified by the site operator |

An intrinsically safe Android smartphone designed for Zone 1 and Zone 21 hazardous areas in Warri. 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 refinery has been shut and restarted repeatedly since 2025, and NNPC signed a memorandum with Chinese firms in April 2026 on restart plans; confirm current status first.
Rail, roads, helipads and local jetties all serve the area, and boat transport is common to reach creek sites.
The city has a seaport that acts as the cargo transit point between the Niger River and the Atlantic Ocean, with Nigerian Ports Authority (Delta Ports) handling the main import and export traffic.
The dry season runs from about November to April and brings the harmattan, a dusty haze on the north-east trade winds, while the rainy season spans May to October with a short drier spell in August.
Oil company yards at places such as Ogunu, Escravos and Forcados have their own helipads, and a general passenger airport serves the Osubi area, giving air access that complements river and road routes.
Beyond oil and gas, the Warri area includes Delta Steel Company in the Ovwian-Aladja area of Udu, a Beta Glass plant near Ughelli and a power station at Ughelli, about 15 minutes away by car.
“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 Warri. At a refinery unit, gas plant or jetty fuel-handling area, a marking check reads zone, gas group and temperature class on the label and matches each to the operator's classification. Gas-to-liquids and refinery streams can include hydrogen, so a IIC target like II 2 G Ex ib IIC T4 would be compared with site data.
SAMS is appointing authorised distributors ahead of the Q4 2026 launch. No territory has been granted for Warri yet and applications are reviewed company by company. Because a certified Ex device cannot be opened by an ordinary phone workshop without invalidating its certificate, SAMS looks for partners who can provide competent technical support and after-sales service locally.
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.
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 refinery process units, gas plants and gas-to-liquids facilities, seaport and jetty fuel handling. 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 Warri.
Rain falls from about May to October with annual totals near 2,770 mm, so expect sustained humidity. Choose devices with a sealed housing and a strap or holster, keep spare batteries dry, and check the operator's induction rules about devices in wet, classified outdoor areas.
Typically yes. The dry-season harmattan carries fine dust that can clog ports, speaker grilles and cooling paths, so sealed enclosures (dust-tight ratings) and routine cleaning matter. Confirm the dust and ingress requirements with the site operator before specifying equipment.
The refinery has been shut and restarted repeatedly since 2025, and NNPC signed a memorandum with Chinese firms in April 2026 on restart plans. Check current status first, before planning any visit or quote. Confirm it with the site operator.
Other guides for Warri, other places in Nigeria, 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.