Refineries
Yanbu hosts three oil refineries; SAMREF was commissioned in 1984 and, like YASREF, is listed at about 400,000 barrels a day.
Yanbu Industrial City on the Red Sea coast was established by royal decree in 1975 and is managed by the Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu. Its refineries, petrochemical plants and export terminals create Zone 1 and Zone 21 areas for operators and contractors. Distribution partners for Yanbu Industrial City are being identified ahead of the Q4 2026 launch of the IS-04Z1.
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.
For the record, no certificate exists for the IS-04Z1 today. The programme is under way ahead of a Q4 2026 launch. A buyer's engineering review is separate from the certificate. Certification status. Place facts reviewed October 2026.
| Check | What to look for | IS-04Z1 today |
|---|---|---|
| Certificate of conformity | Number checkable on the IECEx online register | In progress; not issued |
| Standards edition | The IEC 60079 edition the certificate cites | Stated on the certificate when issued |
| Schedule of conditions | Limits of use, batteries and accessories | Published with the certificate |
| 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.
A short profile of the site and the kinds of classified area that matter for portable equipment.
Yanbu hosts three oil refineries; SAMREF was commissioned in 1984 and, like YASREF, is listed at about 400,000 barrels a day.
Three major oil pipelines from the east end at Yanbu, which has two ports: Yanbu Commercial Port and King Fahd Industrial Port.
Yanbu is reached from the east by the East-West crude pipeline of about 1,200 km, which can bring up to 7 million barrels a day from the Eastern Province.
King Fahd Industrial Port is about 25 km long and covers 50 square km, with 34 berths and a stated capacity of 210 million tonnes a year.
Yanbu is the second most populated city in Medina Province after Medina and the second largest Saudi city on the Red Sea after Jeddah, so a local service base exists.
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.
IECEx is the international scheme for certifying equipment used in explosive atmospheres. A certificate of conformity is issued by an accredited certification body against a specific edition of the IEC 60079 standards and carries a schedule of conditions of safe use. It is not a legal requirement in most countries on its own, but many national schemes accept it as the technical basis.
The IECEx certificate for the IS-04Z1 is in progress and has not been issued. The marking target is Ex ib IIC T4, the intrinsic safety concept for Zone 1 gas with the hardest gas group (IIC) and a 135 °C temperature class.
In Yanbu Industrial City. Because SAMREF and YASREF involve international partners, contractors and EPCs arriving at Yanbu may already work to IECEx. A reviewer would look for the certificate of conformity and the schedule of conditions. For the IS-04Z1 these remain targets only, as certification is in progress.
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 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.
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.
No. The IECEx certificate is in progress and has not been issued. SAMS will publish the number when it exists.
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.
Related guides for Yanbu and for Saudi Arabia.
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.