Operator-led access
Major fields are run by the state operator or joint operating organisations, and site entry is normally controlled through operator-issued permits.
Umm Qasr, Iraq's main deep-water port, opened in July 1967 and is linked by railway to Basra and Baghdad. Super-giant onshore fields such as Rumaila and Majnoon lie in the governorate, and most crude is exported through the Al Basrah Oil Terminal, so Zone 1 work is routine across the area. Distribution partners for Basra are being identified ahead of the Q4 2026 launch of the IS-04Z1.
Pre-launch · certification in progress · Launching Q4 2026
Short answer. Basra 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.
Current position: certification in progress, nothing issued, launch targeted 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 |
|---|---|---|
| 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 | Basra: Gas processing plants, Crude storage and export terminals, Degassing and gathering stations | Classified by the site operator |

An intrinsically safe Android smartphone designed for Zone 1 and Zone 21 hazardous areas in Basra. It is pre-launch: IECEx, ATEX and NEC 500 certification is in progress ahead of the Q4 2026 launch.
A short profile of the site and the kinds of classified area that matter for portable equipment.
Major fields are run by the state operator or joint operating organisations, and site entry is normally controlled through operator-issued permits.
Rumaila lies roughly 50 km south-west of Basra and other fields are further out, so crews travel long distances between sites.
Basra is Iraq's third-largest city and a port on the Shatt al-Arab, which empties into the Persian Gulf, and it is the country's only coastal region together with its governorate.
Rumaila, operated through the Rumaila Operating Organisation under a contract running to 2034, produced about 1.42 million barrels a day in 2022, roughly 30 percent of Iraq's total.
Reconstruction projects funded by foreign investment include the Grand Faw Port, which has drawn global attention to the region's role as a transport hub.
A Basrah to Haditha oil pipeline project worth about 4.56 billion dollars was approved by the Iraqi Cabinet in December 2024.
“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 Basra. Crews at Basra gathering stations and gas plants often call everything explosion-proof. In practice, motors and junction boxes may use flameproof Ex d, while portable electronics rely on intrinsic safety. The IS-04Z1 is designed to be intrinsically safe, which suits a phone carried between wellheads, flowlines and processing areas.
SAMS is appointing authorised distributors ahead of the Q4 2026 launch. No territory has been granted for Basra 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.
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.
Likely candidates are degassing and gathering stations, wellheads and flowlines, gas processing plants, crude storage and export terminals. 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 Basra.
Basra Oil Company is the state operator, and fields such as Rumaila and Majnoon are run through operating organisations or ventures with partners such as BP, CNPC and Petronas. Site access rules come from each operator.
It is the base for Basra Oil Company and the very large fields of the south, plus storage and export terminals. These create wellsite, gathering, tank and jetty hazardous areas across a wide region.
Entry is normally controlled through operator-issued permits, and each operator runs its own technical review and approved-vendor process. The operator also classifies the area. A supplier cannot self-approve a device, so submit the datasheet and certification status early to the relevant operator or contractor.
Other guides for Basra, other places in Iraq, and the pages behind them.
Send the site, zone and gas group and roughly how many handsets. We reply by email with the datasheet and the certification schedule.
Tell us the zone, gas group and operator. We will send the datasheet and the certification schedule.