Satellite Image Shows First Venezuela-Linked Tanker Seized by American Authorities is Currently Off Texas.
American agents boarding the vessel of the Skipper on 10 December.
Satellite imagery and ship tracking information has verified that the oil tanker named Skipper – the first vessel apprehended by the US for allegedly carrying embargoed oil from Venezuela – is currently positioned near of the state of Texas.
A satellite firm's satellite imagery dated 21 December shows the ship is in the vicinity of Galveston, while Automatic Identification System ship-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 the tenth of December and has been blacklisted by multiple governments. When it was intercepted, it was falsely flying the flag of the nation of Guyana.
This interception was followed by the interception of a second oil vessel, the Centuries. It – in contrast to the Skipper – was not yet under sanctions when it was brought under US custody.
American agencies are now pursuing a third ship, which has been identified by the maritime risk group a risk firm as the Bella 1 tanker. President Donald Trump said recently that “it will ultimately be secured”.
Writing on the social media platform X, the maritime monitoring group noted the Bella 1 has been “underway for 39 days” and, at an average speed of 11 nautical miles per hour, may have “approximately a month of diesel left unless her velocity drops”.
The group further stated the tanker is “likely traveling in a southeasterly direction towards South Africa”.
