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 refinery was established in 1939 and expanded substantially after the Second World War, so equipment and layouts range from very old to recently modernised. An intrinsically safe mobile phone distributor in Ras Tanura would carry the IS-04Z1 to these buyers once certification completes.
Pre-launch · certification in progress · Launching Q4 2026
Short answer. Ras Tanura 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. Operator approval runs on its own timeline. Certification status. Place facts reviewed October 2026.
| Check | What to look for | IS-04Z1 today |
|---|---|---|
| Level of protection | ia, ib or ic matched to the zone | ib, for Zone 1 |
| Entity parameters | Uo, Io and Po within the device limits | Published with the certificate |
| Accessories | Chargers and cases certified with the device | Defined at certification |
| Where it applies | Ras Tanura: Storage tank farms, Natural gas liquids fractionation (Ju'aymah), Refinery process units | 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.
The companies on site and the hazardous-area types a handset is likely to meet there.
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.
Saudi Arabia's Communications, Space and Technology Commission handles radio type approval; certificates are renewed every two years, with European test documents accepted.
The area was officially called Rahima from 1941 until 1986, when the historical name was restored, so older Aramco documents and maps may use the earlier name.
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.
The governorate's industrial infrastructure is centrally managed and operated by Saudi Aramco, so a single operator's rules cover refinery, terminal and gas plant work.
Intrinsic safety limits the electrical and thermal energy in a circuit so that neither a spark nor a hot surface can ignite a gas or dust atmosphere, even when a fault occurs. The ib level, used for Zone 1, tolerates one fault. It is the usual way to make a handheld device that a worker carries continuously through a hazardous area.
The IS-04Z1 is designed on this principle for Zone 1 and Zone 21 (marking target II 2 G Ex ib IIC T4). Intrinsic safety is a design basis, not a certificate: certification is in progress and none has been issued yet.
In Ras Tanura. Inspection rounds along the piers, around tank farms and through refinery units involve repeated entry into classified areas. A handheld intrinsically safe handset lets an operator or inspector photograph, log and communicate in place. The IS-04Z1 is designed for Zone 1 rounds of this kind.
A distributor for Ras Tanura 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.
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.
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.
The circuits are designed to limit energy so a spark or hot surface cannot ignite a gas or dust atmosphere, even with one fault (level ib, Zone 1). Certification of that design is in progress.
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.
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 Ras Tanura.
The area was officially named Rahima from 1941 until 1986, when Ras Tanura was restored. Drawings, maps or inspection records may therefore use either name, so make sure the area names in any asset register or work permit are matched before ordering equipment.
Visitors normally fly to King Fahd International Airport in Dammam and drive; Ras Tanura's own airport is private and operated by Aramco for its employees. A two-lane highway connects to the Dhahran to Jubail Highway. Site access is arranged through the host.
It can be. The peninsula is on the Gulf, so salt, humidity and heat apply on top of desert dust. IP68 sealing helps, but check the datasheet for the temperature range and for any limits on cleaning or exposure. Ask the operator about its own environmental requirements.
Other guides for Ras Tanura, other places in Saudi Arabia, 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.