Imagery Data Shows Initial Venezuelan Oil Ship Confiscated by American Authorities is Now Near Texas.
US personnel roped onto the deck of the tanker Skipper on 10 December.
Satellite imagery and ship tracking data has confirmed that the oil tanker Skipper – the initial vessel apprehended by the United States for reportedly transporting embargoed crude from Venezuela – is currently positioned near of the state of Texas.
A satellite firm's orbital photographs from 21 December shows the tanker is in the vicinity of Galveston, while AIS vessel-tracking data from a maritime data service currently positions the vessel about 50 miles from the coast.
The Skipper was seized by American officials on 10 December and has been blacklisted by several governments. At the time it was intercepted, it was incorrectly flying the flag of the nation of Guyana.
This seizure was succeeded by the capture of a second oil vessel, the Centuries tanker. It – in contrast to the first vessel – was not under official restrictions when it was brought under US custody.
US authorities are currently targeting a third such vessel, which has been named by the maritime risk group Vanguard as the Bella 1. President Donald Trump stated yesterday that “it will ultimately be secured”.
Writing on the social media platform X, the TankerTrackers group noted the vessel Bella 1 has been “in transit for 39 days” and, at an typical pace of 11 knots, may have “approximately a month of diesel left unless her velocity decreases”.
The monitoring service further stated the vessel is “probably traveling south-east towards South Africa”.
