Scale
Texas produced about 41 per cent of US crude in 2019 and had 30 refineries holding 31 per cent of US refining capacity in January 2019.
Texas is the largest US crude oil producer, with onshore fields concentrated in the Permian Basin in the west and the historic East Texas field. Zone 1 work arises at wellsites, tank batteries, compressor stations and gas plants. If you are specifying an intrinsically safe smartphone for Texas oil and gas fields, 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 Texas oil and gas fields: pre-launch, designed for Zone 1 and Zone 21 (marking target Ex ib IIC T4), with certification in progress and no certificate issued.
Current position: certification in progress, nothing issued, launch targeted 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 | Texas oil and gas fields: Wellsites and tank batteries, Drilling rigs, Compressor stations | Classified by the site operator |

An intrinsically safe Android smartphone designed for Zone 1 and Zone 21 hazardous areas in Texas Oil Fields. 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.
Texas produced about 41 per cent of US crude in 2019 and had 30 refineries holding 31 per cent of US refining capacity in January 2019.
Drilling shifted west as eastern fields such as East Texas, discovered in 1930, declined. The Permian Basin now dominates onshore output.
As wells in the east of the state depleted, drilling moved westward, and today the busiest activity is in West Texas and under the Gulf of Mexico.
Thirty refineries operating in January 2019 made up 31 percent of national refining capacity, so oilfield and refinery work is closely linked.
The first major Spindletop well was drilled on 10 January 1901, and the East Texas Oil Field, found in 1930, is the largest and most prolific oil reservoir in the contiguous United States.
The Commission keeps about 132 million pages of well history documents, from drilling permits onward, and publishes monthly production data by county.
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 Texas oil and gas fields. Field operators in Texas make repeated visits to wellsites, tank batteries and compressor stations, where a phone is useful for checks, photographs and reporting. An intrinsically safe handheld is designed to be carried into Zone 1 areas. Operator permit systems still apply, and certification must be completed first.
A short checklist for anyone writing or reviewing the specification, with the IS-04Z1 status against each point.
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.
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 wellsites and tank batteries, drilling rigs, compressor stations, gas processing plants. 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.
Operators reported 156,120 oil wells and 84,661 gas wells in May 2026. That scale means field crews are widely dispersed, so reliable communication and battery life matter as much as location.
No, conditions differ widely: the Gulf Coast is humid and hurricane-exposed, West Texas is hot, dry and dusty, and parts of the state see winter frost. Match specifications to the region where the equipment will be used.
The Railroad Commission of Texas oversees oil and gas exploration, production and transport, including hydrogen sulphide safety. It does not certify phones. Equipment requirements generally come from producers and contractors, and the IS-04Z1 holds no certificate yet. Confirm requirements with the site operator.
More on Texas Oil Fields, and on other places in United States.
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.