Climate
Hot desert climate with a July record of 51 C; coastal conditions favour sealed equipment.
The harbour is about 20 km south of Yanbu and is sheltered from the open sea by an offshore barrier reef running parallel to the coast. Its refineries, petrochemical plants and export terminals create Zone 1 and Zone 21 areas for operators and contractors. An explosion proof smartphone distributor in Yanbu Industrial City would carry the IS-04Z1 to these buyers once certification completes.
Pre-launch · certification in progress · Launching Q4 2026
Short answer. Yanbu Industrial City 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. 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 | Yanbu Industrial City: Crude and product storage and loading, Marine terminals, Refinery process units | Classified by the site operator |

An intrinsically safe Android smartphone designed for Zone 1 and Zone 21 hazardous areas in Yanbu. 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.
Hot desert climate with a July record of 51 C; coastal conditions favour sealed equipment.
Yanbu hosts three oil refineries; SAMREF was commissioned in 1984 and, like YASREF, is listed at about 400,000 barrels a day.
Yanbu has three separate parts about fifteen minutes apart by car: Yanbu Al-Bahr in the north, Yanbu Al-Nakhal inland, and the industrial city in the south with the Royal Commission residential area beside it.
Saudi Arabia's Communications, Space and Technology Commission handles radio type approval; certificates are renewed every two years and European test documents are accepted.
The port handles about 1,800 vessels and over 84 million tonnes of cargo a year, including crude oil, so marine and jetty work is continuous.
Its terminals include general cargo and container, bulk, export refinery and chemical, crude oil, NGL and LPG terminals, so hazardous cargo handling is spread along the coast.
“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 Yanbu Industrial City. At refinery process units and marine terminals, explosion-proof is a catch-all word. Flameproof Ex d suits fixed equipment, whereas handhelds such as the IS-04Z1 are designed around intrinsic safety. Coastal conditions favour sealed equipment, but sealing is an environmental measure and not an ignition protection concept.
A distributor for Yanbu Industrial City 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.
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.
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 refinery process units, petrochemical plants, crude and product storage and loading, marine 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 Yanbu Industrial City.
Coastal air is humid and salt-laden, and summers are hot, so sealed housings, corrosion-resistant connectors and a wide operating temperature range are sensible choices. The port harbour is shielded by an offshore reef, but that does not remove the salt air.
King Fahd Industrial Port has crude oil, NGL, LPG and chemical terminals among its eight, and handles about 1,800 vessels a year. Jetties, manifolds and pump areas typically need Zone 1 or Zone 2 equipment; terminal operators set their own approval rules.
Plant-side purchasing sits with each refinery or contractor, while Aramco uses its e-Marketplace Platform for registration. Requirements differ between SAMREF, YASREF and Aramco's own refinery. Confirm with the site operator before ordering, and expect any handheld to need approval from the specific plant.
Other guides for Yanbu, other places in Saudi Arabia, 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.