Wider complex
The governorate also has the Ju'aymah gas plant and the Ghazlan power plant serving Eastern Province industry.
Ras Tanura is a peninsula governorate in the Eastern Province hosting Aramco's Ras Tanura Refinery, with a crude distillation capacity of 550,000 barrels a day, and one of the world's largest crude export terminals. The marine complex is described as handling over 2,000 tankers a year, using an artificial island, north and south piers and the Ju'aymah crude terminal. If you are specifying a hazardous area mobile phone for Ras Tanura, this page covers the markings, the approvals and the current certification status of the IS-04Z1.
Pre-launch · certification in progress · Launching Q4 2026
Short answer. The SAMS IS-04Z1 is the intrinsically safe smartphone covered here for Ras Tanura: pre-launch, designed for Zone 1 and Zone 21 (marking target Ex ib IIC T4), with certification in progress and no certificate issued.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| 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 | Ras Tanura: Refinery process units, Crude export terminal piers and sea islands, Storage tank farms | Classified by the site operator |

An intrinsically safe Android smartphone designed for Zone 1 and Zone 21 hazardous areas in Ras Tanura. 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.
The governorate also has the Ju'aymah gas plant and the Ghazlan power plant serving Eastern Province industry.
Aramco facilities are controlled-access sites; Dammam airport serves commercial travel.
A two-lane highway joins Ras Tanura to the Dhahran to Jubail Highway, and the Ras Tanura to Safwa Bridge links it with Safwa city in Qatif Governorate.
Commercial flights use King Fahd International Airport in Dammam; Ras Tanura's own airport is private and run by Aramco for its employees.
Saudi Arabia's Communications, Space and Technology Commission handles radio type approval; certificates are renewed every two years, with European test documents accepted.
The refinery was established in 1939 and expanded substantially after the Second World War, so equipment and layouts range from very old to recently modernised.
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 Ras Tanura. Ras Tanura's classified areas include refinery process units, terminal piers and sea islands, storage tank farms and natural gas liquids fractionation at Ju'aymah. Aramco as operator classifies them; SAMS does not. A buyer should request the area drawings for the specific unit before choosing equipment.
A short checklist for anyone writing or reviewing the specification, with the IS-04Z1 status against each point.
Not today. Until the certificates are issued the IS-04Z1 stays out of classified areas, and until launch there is nothing to purchase. You can ask for the datasheet and the certification schedule, or book a safe-area evaluation unit.
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.
Likely candidates are refinery process units, crude export terminal piers and sea islands, storage tank farms, natural gas liquids fractionation (ju'aymah). Which areas are classified, and to what zone, is set by the site operator's own area classification drawings.
Not exactly. Explosion proof is a broad everyday term; intrinsic safety is one protection concept, which limits energy so ignition cannot occur. Flameproof (Ex d) is a different concept that contains an explosion. The IS-04Z1 is intrinsically safe by design.
Saudi Aramco manages and operates the industrial infrastructure, so its safety and approval procedures apply to contractors working on the refinery, terminal and gas plant. Check the current vendor and equipment-approval requirements with the Aramco project owner or the main contractor.
Both. The refinery dates from 1939 and has been expanded many times, so older plant sits alongside modern units. For handheld devices, ask for the area classification and equipment group for each unit, since gas groups and temperature classes can differ between old and new areas.
Only if its protection suits the classified area there, and if the operator permits it. The piers and sea islands handle crude, where Aramco classifies the area. Ask Aramco or the site contractor for the zone and the device approval route before any handset goes near a loading point.
Related guides for Ras Tanura and for Saudi Arabia.
Share the site details and quantity. You will get the datasheet and the certification schedule back by email; pricing is indicative only until launch.
Name the site and the operator and we will send what is available before launch.