Satellite Image Reveals First Venezuelan Tanker Seized by US is Now Off the Texas Coast.
American personnel roped onto the vessel of the tanker Skipper on 10 December.
Orbital data and vessel monitoring information has verified that the oil tanker Skipper – the initial vessel seized by the United States for allegedly carrying embargoed oil from the Venezuelan regime – is currently off the coast of Texas.
Vantor orbital photographs from 21 December shows the ship is in the vicinity of Galveston, while AIS ship-tracking feeds from MarineTraffic currently positions the Skipper about 80km from the coast.
The Skipper was seized by US authorities on 10 December and has been sanctioned by multiple governments. When it was seized, it was incorrectly flying the flag of Guyana.
This seizure was succeeded by the interception of a another tanker, the Centuries. This ship – in contrast to the first vessel – was not yet under official restrictions when it was brought under US custody.
American agencies are now pursuing a third such ship, which has been named by the maritime risk group a risk firm as the Bella 1 tanker. President Donald Trump stated recently that “it will ultimately be secured”.
Writing on X, the maritime monitoring group noted the Bella 1 has been “in transit for 39 days” and, at an average speed of 11 knots, may have “another 28 to 35 days of diesel remaining unless her speed decreases”.
The monitoring service added the vessel is “probably traveling south-east towards the South African coast”.
