Satellite Data Reveals First Venezuelan Tanker Seized by US is Now Near the Texas Coast.
US personnel roped onto the deck of the tanker Skipper on December 10th.
Orbital data and ship tracking information has verified that the oil tanker named Skipper – the first vessel seized by the United States for allegedly carrying sanctioned crude from Venezuela – is currently off the coast of the state of Texas.
Vantor orbital photographs from 21 December indicates the ship is in the vicinity of the port of Galveston, while AIS vessel-tracking data from a maritime data service currently positions the vessel about 50 miles offshore.
The Skipper was taken into custody by US authorities on the tenth of December and has been sanctioned by multiple nations. When it was intercepted, it was falsely sailing under the flag of Guyana.
This interception was followed by the capture of a another oil vessel, the Centuries. This ship – unlike the first vessel – was not under sanctions when it was taken into American control.
American agencies are now targeting a third ship, which has been identified by the maritime risk group Vanguard as the Bella 1. President Donald Trump said recently that “it will ultimately be secured”.
Writing on the social media platform 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 “another 28 to 35 days of diesel left unless her velocity decreases”.
The group further stated the vessel is “likely heading south-east towards South Africa”.
