Salt air and humidity
The Red Sea coast adds salt and moisture to the usual heat. IP68 sealing and rugged build are specified with that in mind, and charging contacts are a place to check during evaluation.
Saudi Arabia · YASREF
Explosion proof mobile phone for YASREF, Yanbu
YASREF is the Aramco and Sinopec refinery at Yanbu on the Red Sea, built to turn Arabian Heavy crude into fuels, LPG, sulphur and petroleum coke. This page is for the operations, HSE and telecoms teams looking for an explosion proof mobile phone for YASREF in Saudi Arabia, and it describes what that site demands of a handset. The IS-04Z1 is designed around intrinsic safety rather than a flameproof enclosure.
Launching Q4 2026 · IECEx and cross-market documentation in progress
Local approvalSASO · IECExIECEx · SASO in progress
AvailabilityQ4 2026via authorised distributors
The site · YASREF
Explosion proof mobile phone for a Red Sea refinery at Yanbu
YASREF is owned 62.5 per cent by Saudi Aramco and 37.5 per cent by Sinopec. It is a 400,000 barrel a day integrated refinery in Yanbu Industrial City, processing Arabian Heavy crude and producing gasoline, diesel and LPG, with sulphur and petroleum coke leaving as by-products for export. A refinery configured that way has the full hydroprocessing and coking sequence behind its distillation units, so the area classification runs from hydrocarbon vapour at the crude unit to hydrogen in the hydrotreaters and hydrogen sulphide in the sulphur recovery area. Coke and sulphur handling add combustible solids, and the plant sits on the coast with the sea at one boundary and the wider Yanbu industrial area at the other.
Owners, neighbours and contractors
- Saudi Aramco
- Majority shareholder, with 62.5 per cent.
- Sinopec
- Minority shareholder, with 37.5 per cent.
- Yanbu Industrial City
- Shared infrastructure and port access with neighbouring plants.
- SABIC affiliates at Yanbu
- Petrochemical producers on the same industrial city.
- Contractors
- A mixed workforce during turnarounds, with documents often needed in more than one language.
Classified units and areas
- Crude distillation
- Hydrocarbon vapour and liquid under heat.
- Coking and residue upgrading
- The units that justify the full-conversion label.
- Hydrotreating
- Hydrogen at pressure, gas group IIC.
- Sulphur recovery and handling
- Hydrogen sulphide, plus sulphur as a combustible dust.
- Coke storage and export
- Solids handling at the port side.
- Tank farm and marine loading
- Product storage and berth transfer on the Red Sea coast.
Built for local conditions
What the Red Sea coast does to a handset
Yanbu does not behave like the Gulf side of the Kingdom. The air carries salt, humidity is higher, and the neighbouring plants share a coastal setting. These are the points that follow for a handset.
IP ratingIP68
Battery4,000 mAh
Camera50 MP
OSAndroid 16
Hydrogen and the IIC question
Hydroprocessing means hydrogen is part of the area classification. The IS-04Z1 marking target is II 2 G Ex ib IIC T4. The certificate will state its scope once issued.
Coke and sulphur as dust
Handling solids at the export side adds Zone 21 or Zone 22 areas. The device is designed for Zone 21 dust, which suits the more demanding of the two.
Two parents, two certification habits
Sinopec's home market runs the NEPSI scheme, which shares an IEC basis with IECEx but is a separate process. The technical file is being prepared so that cross-reference is easy to see, without suggesting a Chinese certificate is already held.
Turnaround crews from several countries
Planned shutdowns bring contractors from several countries onto one site. A handset enrolled in the operator's console can be configured for a gang in minutes, and Arabic and English are both available.
Use cases · YASREF
Where the IS-04Z1 goes to work at YASREF
Process01
Coker and hydrotreater rounds
Operators walking the high-severity units record readings, photograph defects and report from inside the area. The handset takes the place of the radio, camera and paper sheet.
Marine02
Berth and tank farm transfers
Product leaves by ship from the Yanbu coast. A handset that survives salt spray lets the operator confirm a line-up and report a leak without going back to the control room.
Shutdown03
Contractor crews during turnaround
A large temporary workforce means permits, site directories and daily reports in several languages. An enrolled handset holds the approved applications and nothing else.
Questions · YASREF
Frequently asked questions
Does YASREF need a Chinese Ex certificate?
That is a question for YASREF's own engineering team. The site is in Saudi Arabia, and Saudi operators work from IECEx. The documentation is being prepared to make the link to NEPSI clear should a reviewer ask.
How is Yanbu different from Jubail for a handset?
Salt and higher humidity on the Red Sea, compared with the Gulf coast climate at Jubail. Sealing and charging contact condition are the points to look at in evaluation.
Does the same device handle coke and sulphur dust?
Zone 21 dust is part of the design target, alongside Zone 1 gas. The dust group and the surface temperature limit on the area drawing still decide where it may be used.
Has YASREF approved the IS-04Z1?
No. It is pre-launch, certification is in progress ahead of Q4 2026, and no vendor approval can exist before the certificate does.
Elsewhere in
Saudi Arabia
Enquiry · YASREF
Ask about the IS-04Z1 for YASREF, Saudi Arabia
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 Saudi Arabia. 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.
Enquiry · YASREF
Launching Q4 2026
Evaluating the IS-04Z1 for this site?
Tell us the zone, gas group and operator. We will send the datasheet and the certification schedule for your market.