Norway: background
Statoil built petrochemical processing plants at Rafnes and, with Norsk Hydro, at Mongstad in 1980, and became operator on the Gullfaks field in 1981, the first Norwegian company to do so.
The IS-04Z1 is an intrinsically safe Android handset designed for Zone 1 and Zone 21, from a wet deck in the northern North Sea to a winter round on the Barents coast. Norway was the eighth largest crude oil exporter and the third largest natural gas exporter in 2011, with gas exports of 99 billion cubic metres, so gas processing and export terminals are major classified-area sites. An explosion proof mobile phone distributor in Norway would carry the IS-04Z1 to these buyers once certification completes.
Pre-launch · certification in progress · Launching Q4 2026
Short answer. Norway 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.
For the record, no certificate exists for the IS-04Z1 today. The programme is under way ahead of a Q4 2026 launch. 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Protection concept | Flameproof (Ex d) or intrinsic safety (Ex i) | Intrinsic safety, level ib |
| Zone suitability | Zone 1 gas and Zone 21 dust | Design target for Zone 1 and 21 |
| Certificate | Number, issuing body and schedule of conditions | In progress; not issued |
| Where it applies | Norway: Kårstø, Kollsnes, Mongstad | Classified by the site operator |

An intrinsically safe Android smartphone designed for Zone 1 and Zone 21 hazardous areas in Norway. It is pre-launch: IECEx, ATEX and NEC 500 certification is in progress ahead of the Q4 2026 launch.
The classified areas, operators and sites below are the ones covered in the SAMS Norway market guide.
Statoil built petrochemical processing plants at Rafnes and, with Norsk Hydro, at Mongstad in 1980, and became operator on the Gullfaks field in 1981, the first Norwegian company to do so.
North Sea oil was discovered in Norwegian waters in the late 1960s, and oil and gas exports have since become a central part of the Norwegian economy, with a mature and well-developed offshore supply chain.
Mongstad in Vestland county has Norway's largest refinery at about 12 million tonnes of crude a year, a crude terminal with 9.5 million barrels of storage, and Norway's biggest port by tonnage.
Most of Norway's electricity is generated by hydroelectric plants, so dams, tunnels and power stations are a separate type of industrial site alongside oil and gas.
“Explosion proof” is the phrase most buyers use for equipment that may be taken into a classified hazardous area. Strictly, it covers several protection concepts: a flameproof enclosure (Ex d) contains an internal explosion, while intrinsic safety (Ex i) limits electrical energy so that an ignition cannot start. Phones are normally intrinsically safe, because a flameproof handset would be too heavy to carry all shift.
The IS-04Z1 uses intrinsic safety, with a marking target of Ex ib IIC T4, and is designed for Zone 1 and Zone 21. It is pre-launch, certification is in progress and no certificate has been issued.
In Norway. Offshore crews say explosion proof, but concepts differ. Flameproof Ex d suits fixed equipment on a platform, while the IS-04Z1 uses intrinsic safety, Ex ib. That suits a handset carried on a wet deck or through processing at Kårstø, Kollsnes and Nyhamna, where one person moves through many areas in a shift.
A distributor for Norway would carry the IS-04Z1 after certification completes; the Q4 2026 launch is the planning date and no appointment has been made. SAMS reviews applicants one by one and prefers companies with their own Ex-competent technical and service staff, since certified devices must not be repaired outside approved channels.
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.
There is no list price yet. SAMS gives indicative pre-launch pricing in writing, against a stated quantity and site, and does not commit to a lead time before certification completes.
It is intrinsically safe (marking target Ex ib IIC T4), which is the usual way to make a phone for hazardous areas. It is not a flameproof (Ex d) design, and certification is still in progress.
The market guide for Norway covers Stavanger and Sola, Bergen and Flesland, Kårstø, Kollsnes, among others. Site-level pages are linked below.
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 Norway.
Norway applies ATEX through the European Economic Area agreement, and operators commonly accept IECEx as well. Offshore, each installation adds its own rules for equipment approval and for use of wireless devices. Ask the operator for the approved equipment procedure before shipping devices.
Ask which equipment marking is required, whether wireless devices need a radio permit onboard, how devices are registered and tagged, and whether English documents are accepted. Offshore installations often require pre-approval before devices are shipped by helicopter or supply vessel.
IP68 sealing and a rugged build are designed for wet and cold work, but the ambient range is fixed by the certificate, which is not yet issued and will be published with the datasheet. Compare that range with your coldest site conditions and confirm with the operator before use.
More on Norway, and on other places in Norway.
Tell us what you need to equip and where. The SAMS team answers by email with the datasheet and where each certification route stands.
Name the site and the operator and we will send what is available before launch.