Imagery Data Shows First Venezuelan Tanker Confiscated by American Authorities is Now Off Texas.
American personnel boarding the deck of the tanker Skipper on 10 December.
Orbital data and ship tracking information has confirmed that the oil tanker named Skipper – the initial vessel apprehended by the US for allegedly transporting embargoed crude from the Venezuelan regime – is currently off the coast of Texas.
Vantor orbital photographs from 21 December shows the tanker is near Galveston, while Automatic Identification System ship-tracking data from MarineTraffic presently places the Skipper about 50 miles from the coast.
The Skipper was taken into custody by American officials on 10 December and has been sanctioned by multiple governments. At the time it was seized, it was incorrectly flying the ensign of Guyana.
This interception was succeeded by the capture of a another tanker, the Centuries tanker. It – unlike the Skipper – was not under sanctions when it was brought under American control.
US authorities are now targeting a third vessel, which has been named by the risk management group a risk firm as the Bella 1 tanker. President Donald Trump stated recently that “we’ll end up getting it”.
Writing on X, the maritime monitoring group noted the vessel Bella 1 has been “in transit for over a month” and, at an average speed of 11 knots, may have “approximately a month of diesel remaining unless her speed decreases”.
The monitoring service added the vessel is “likely traveling south-east towards South Africa”.
