An explosion proof mobile phone for gas work in France has to follow a three-part system: import terminals bringing LNG in at Montoir-de-Bretagne and Fos, Storengy's underground storage sites buffering seasonal demand, and GRTgaz's transmission network and compressor stations tying it all together. This page is for the HSE, operations and telecoms staff at those sites and the contractors who work for them. The IS-04Z1 is designed around intrinsic safety rather than a flameproof enclosure.
Launching Q4 2026 · ATEX programme in progress
Import, storage and transmission are run as distinct businesses in France, each with its own classified-area equipment needs shaped by a different part of the gas handling process.
Regasification equipment at Elengy's Montoir-de-Bretagne and Fos terminals and compressor stations on the GRTgaz network are classified Zone 1 gas atmospheres, and Ex ib IIC T4 covers the natural gas atmospheres typical of this equipment.
As an EU member state, France's hazardous-area equipment requirements are governed by the ATEX directives across the gas infrastructure sector.
Elengy's terminals, Storengy's underground storage and GRTgaz's transmission network are run as distinct companies, meaning a contractor moving between them needs equipment approved across more than one operator's site rules.
EMM and MDM enrolment supports an operator or contractor managing devices consistently across geographically dispersed terminals, storage sites and compressor stations.
French gas infrastructure is split across import, underground storage and transmission businesses.
Natural gas is the one hazard common to all three businesses, but the places where a person stands with a handset in their hand are very different: a quayside, a wellhead pad and a fenced compressor hall.
An LNG terminal works to the ship schedule. Cargo transfer needs ship-to-shore communication, a gas detector check and a safety walk, and the operator on the quay needs one device that does not have to be swapped at the gangway.
Storage fields fill through the warm months and empty in winter, so planned maintenance usually falls in a quieter part of the cycle. Contractors arrive for those windows and leave again, which suits a device enrolled for the duration of a job.
A transmission network of this size is not staffed station by station. A technician drives between sites, so a position fix, a photograph and a call to the control room need to be available at each gate.
Elengy, Storengy and GRTgaz are separate businesses. A contractor moving between them should ask each operator's procurement and HSE teams what documentation, marking and management arrangements they expect before a device is carried in.
During unloading, an operator walks the quayside and tank area while staying in contact with the control room. Photographs of a flange or a cold spot can be filed against the equipment tag rather than described afterwards.
A storage site has dispersed wells and surface plant. A coordinate on the record and a camera for the defect save a second visit to confirm which well was meant.
A technician attending an alarm at a station records the reading, the photograph and the permit on one device and enters the log before leaving the gate.
No. The device is pre-launch and certification, including ATEX, is still in progress ahead of the Q4 2026 launch.
Both are gas-rated Zone 1/2 atmospheres from natural gas handling, so the same Ex ib IIC T4 rating applies across the two, even though the equipment layout differs.
ATEX is the primary EU regulatory framework; IECEx serves as useful supporting international technical evidence.
No, Elengy, Storengy and GRTgaz are separate companies and each runs its own procurement process.
No. Methane belongs to group IIA, which is less demanding than the IIC group used for hydrogen. A handset marked Ex ib IIC covers the lower groups as well, which is why one marking can serve a terminal where LNG is the main hazard and a neighbouring site where hydrogen is present.
No. It is a separate import terminal with its own operator, so a contractor working there should treat it as its own site with its own procurement route.
Not necessarily. The zoning follows the layout and ventilation of each area, and the operator's own explosion protection document is the reference. Open air, an enclosed hall and a trench each classify differently.
Tell us the site, the zone and gas group, and roughly how many handsets. The SAMS team replies by email with the datasheet and the certification schedule for France. The IS-04Z1 is pre-launch and certification is in progress, so there is no list price yet; indicative pricing is issued in writing against a stated quantity and site.
Tell us the zone, gas group and operator. We will send the datasheet and the certification schedule for your market.
