Tantita Security Services Nigeria Limited has alleged that oil companies purchase refined Automotive Gas Oil, commonly known as diesel, from illegal refineries in various host communities in the Niger Delta region.

This claim was made on Monday during the Nigeria Oil and Gas Energy Week Conference in Abuja.

Tantita Security Services, headquartered in Warri, Delta State, specializes in providing security solutions for the oil and gas sector, including services for the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited.

Speaking at a session titled “Exploring Nigerian Content Solutions to Meet Energy Demand,” Warredi Enisuoh, the Executive Director of Operations and Technical at Tantita Security Services, stated that illegal refineries produce large volumes of diesel, which are bought by many downstream operators, including oil companies.

He emphasized that the crackdown on these refineries by Tantita and other security agencies has led to an increase in diesel prices.

“Why is there no scarcity of diesel while there is scarcity of PMS (Premium Motor Spirit, commonly known as petrol)? The story is simple: most of the diesel you buy is produced by the communities. About 90 percent of the diesel in the fuel stations is produced by the communities. It will also interest you to know that even the oil companies patronize the local communities. Don’t let anybody deceive you; they (oil companies) also patronize the local communities,” Enisuoh declared.

Enisuoh explained that addressing energy demand with Nigerian content solutions requires focusing on local communities. He insisted that without the intervention of security agencies like Tantita, the production of illegal diesel would continue to rise.

“The reason why the price of diesel is high today is because of the work of private security companies like my company, Tantita Security Services. This is because we have been able to cut down on a lot of the businesses of the illegal refineries. This is why you see the cost of diesel going up,” he stated.