New Zealand: infrastructure
Ahuroa Gas Storage Facility is the country's only underground gas storage site, so compressor, wellhead and storage-related classified areas are concentrated in a small number of places.
The IS-04Z1 is an intrinsically safe handset for people who cross into classified areas in New Zealand every shift: Taranaki gas-field operators, methanol and fertiliser plant crews, dairy-processing engineers managing milk-powder dust risk, and the HSE and telecoms teams who equip them. This page sets out how an Ex-proof smartphone supply route to New Zealand will work for the IS-04Z1, and what is and is not available before launch.
Pre-launch · certification in progress · Launching Q4 2026
Short answer. An Ex-proof smartphone for New Zealand cannot be bought yet: the SAMS IS-04Z1 is pre-launch (certification in progress, no certificate issued), and the datasheet, certification schedule and safe-area evaluation units are available now.
For the record, no certificate exists for the IS-04Z1 today. The programme is under way ahead of a Q4 2026 launch. 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 | New Zealand: Marsden Point, Dairy processing sites nationwide, Taranaki | Classified by the site operator |

An intrinsically safe Android smartphone designed for Zone 1 and Zone 21 hazardous areas in New Zealand. It is pre-launch: IECEx, ATEX and NEC 500 certification is in progress ahead of the Q4 2026 launch.
Operators and classified areas drawn from the SAMS New Zealand market guide.
Ahuroa Gas Storage Facility is the country's only underground gas storage site, so compressor, wellhead and storage-related classified areas are concentrated in a small number of places.
About 2,600 km of high-pressure gas transmission pipeline runs in the North Island, led by the 307 km Maui pipeline carrying 78% of production; there is no gas transmission in the South Island.
All domestic oil and gas comes from 21 petroleum permits in the Taranaki basin, with Kapuni, Maui, Pohokura and Kupe the most important fields, which concentrates upstream work on the west coast of the North Island.
Hazardous-area inspections are done by suitably registered inspectors working to AS/NZS 60079.17 and AS/NZS 3000, with a verification dossier and records kept, so documents for any device should be easy to supply.
“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 New Zealand. A marking check in New Zealand reads II 2 G Ex ib IIC T4 against the area classification for Taranaki gas, condensate and methanol work. The second hazard is combustible dust: dried milk powder in drying towers and silos at Fonterra and other processors, which is why the Zone 21 design target matters and should be compared with each site's drawing.
Nothing can be bought for New Zealand today: the IS-04Z1 is pre-launch, and SAMS will supply end users through authorised distributors once certificates exist. What a buyer can do now is take the specification, ask for the written certification schedule and arrange a safe-area evaluation, so that the right local channel contacts you at launch.
The technical specification, marking target and conditions of use, sent by email.
Which certificates are in progress, in what order, and what is still to be confirmed.
Evaluation units can be used for connectivity, MDM enrolment and workflow testing outside classified areas.
Tell us the site, zone, gas group and quantity so the right authorised distributor can contact you.
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.
The market guide for New Zealand covers Taranaki, Motunui / Waitara Valley, Kapuni, Marsden Point, among others. Site-level pages are linked below.
Through authorised distributors once certificates exist. Until then SAMS can send the datasheet and certification schedule and arrange safe-area evaluation units.
Electrical equipment for explosive atmospheres is generally selected and inspected to AS/NZS 60079, the local adoption of the IEC 60079 series, alongside AS/NZS 3000 for installations. IECEx certificates are widely accepted as evidence, but confirm the exact requirement with the site operator or your inspector.
Inspectors typically look for equipment marking suited to the zone, the certificate or verification dossier, and a record of inspection under AS/NZS 60079.17. Keep the certificate number, marking photo and any manufacturer instructions with the asset register entry.
The battery is sized for a working day of plant rounds, but real life depends on use of camera, GNSS and radio. There is no recharge point inside a classified area, so plan to charge in a safe area. Test the device on your own round before relying on it.
Other guides for New Zealand, other places in New Zealand, 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.
Tell us the zone, gas group and operator. We will send the datasheet and the certification schedule.