Qatar: background
Mesaieed was established in 1949 as a tanker terminal and was Qatar's only deepwater port for more than 20 years; it is 36 km south of Doha.
The IS-04Z1 is an intrinsically safe smartphone for the crews inside Qatar’s classified areas and the people who equip them: panel and field operators, mechanical and instrument technicians, marine and jetty teams, HSE advisers and telecoms managers. Hamad Port, south of Doha near Mesaieed, became operational in December 2016 and is Qatar's main seaport, carrying largely food and building materials. Distribution partners for Qatar are being identified ahead of the Q4 2026 launch of the IS-04Z1.
Pre-launch · certification in progress · Launching Q4 2026
Short answer. Qatar 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. 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Zone | 0, 1 or 2 for gas; 20, 21 or 22 for dust | Designed for Zone 1 and Zone 21 |
| Gas group | IIA, IIB or IIC | IIC (target) |
| Area drawing | The operator's own classification drawing | Decided by the site operator |
| Where it applies | Qatar: North Field, Dukhan, Halul Island | Classified by the site operator |

An intrinsically safe Android smartphone designed for Zone 1 and Zone 21 hazardous areas in Qatar. It is pre-launch: IECEx, ATEX and NEC 500 certification is in progress ahead of the Q4 2026 launch.
The main operators, industrial areas and sites that the SAMS Qatar market guide covers.
Mesaieed was established in 1949 as a tanker terminal and was Qatar's only deepwater port for more than 20 years; it is 36 km south of Doha.
Ras Laffan Industrial City, 80 km north of Doha, is Qatar's main site for liquefied natural gas and gas-to-liquids, hosting Pearl GTL, ORYX GTL, QatarEnergy LNG plants and the Laffan Refinery.
More than 80 percent of Qatar's inhabitants live in Doha, while the industrial cities of Ras Laffan, 80 km north, and Mesaieed, 36 km south, are separate sites administered by QatarEnergy.
Qatar's Communications Regulatory Authority issues a certificate of type approval for radio and telecom equipment based on EU and FCC standards, with no local representative and no fixed expiry.
A hazardous area is a place where flammable gas, vapour or combustible dust may be present. Standards divide these into zones: Zones 0, 1 and 2 for gas and vapour, and Zones 20, 21 and 22 for dust. Zone 1 and Zone 21 are the tier where an explosive atmosphere is likely to occur in normal operation, which is where the IS-04Z1 is designed to work. Anything carried in must be marked for the zone, gas group and temperature class of the area.
No certificate has been issued for the IS-04Z1 yet, so it must not be taken into a classified area until the certificate covering it exists and the site operator has accepted it.
In Qatar. Qatar's classified areas sit in a few planned zones with controlled access, plus an offshore estate: Ras Laffan Industrial City, Mesaieed Industrial Area, Dukhan, Halul Island, Al Khor support base and the Doha Industrial Area. The operator or site authority classifies each area; SAMS does not.
SAMS is appointing authorised distributors ahead of the Q4 2026 launch. No territory has been granted for Qatar 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.
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.
Zone 1 and Zone 21 (gas and dust) with gas group IIC and temperature class T4, subject to certification. It must not be used in a classified area before its certificate is issued and the site has accepted it.
The market guide for Qatar covers Ras Laffan Industrial City, Mesaieed Industrial Area, North Field, Dukhan, 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 Qatar.
Industrial cities typically have gate and permit systems run by their administration and plant operators. Contractors normally need sponsorship and induction, so ask your host.
Ras Laffan Industrial City in the north for LNG, gas-to-liquids and refining, and Mesaieed Industrial City in the south, a prime industrial zone and tanking centre. Both are administered by QatarEnergy subsidiaries.
The radio inside the handset needs separate CRA type approval, and conformity for the imported product is administered by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. Both sit inside the launch programme and neither has been granted. Confirm with the site operator which evidence is needed before bringing a device in.
More on Qatar, and on other places in Qatar.
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.