Imagery Data Shows Initial Venezuelan Tanker Confiscated by US is Currently Near Texas.
American personnel roped onto the deck of the tanker Skipper on 10 December.
Satellite imagery and ship tracking data has verified that the oil tanker Skipper – the initial vessel seized by the US for allegedly transporting sanctioned crude from Venezuela – is now off the coast of Texas.
Vantor satellite imagery dated 21 December indicates the tanker is near Galveston, while Automatic Identification System vessel-tracking data from a maritime data service presently places the vessel about 80km offshore.
The tanker Skipper was taken into custody by American officials on 10 December and has been sanctioned by several governments. When it was seized, it was falsely sailing under the flag of the nation of Guyana.
This seizure was succeeded by the capture of a second tanker, the Centuries tanker. This ship – in contrast to the Skipper – was not yet under official restrictions when it was taken into American control.
US authorities are currently targeting a third vessel, which has been identified by the risk management group a risk firm as the Bella 1. The US President stated recently that “we’ll end up getting it”.
Writing on X, the maritime monitoring group said the Bella 1 has been “underway for over a month” and, at an typical pace of 11 nautical miles per hour, may have “approximately a month of fuel left unless her velocity decreases”.
The group added the tanker is “likely traveling south-east towards South Africa”.
