Imagery Data Reveals First Venezuelan Tanker Confiscated by American Authorities is Now Near the Texas Coast.
American agents boarding the deck of the tanker Skipper on December 10th.
Satellite imagery and ship tracking information has verified that the crude carrier Skipper – the first vessel apprehended by the United States for allegedly transporting sanctioned crude from Venezuela – is currently positioned near of the state of Texas.
Vantor satellite imagery dated 21 December shows the tanker is in the vicinity of the port of Galveston, while Automatic Identification System ship-tracking data from a maritime data service presently positions the vessel about 80km offshore.
The Skipper was seized by American officials on 10 December and has been blacklisted by several governments. When it was seized, it was incorrectly sailing under the ensign of the nation of Guyana.
This interception was followed by the capture of a another tanker, 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. President Donald Trump stated recently that “it will ultimately be secured”.
Writing on the social media platform X, the TankerTrackers group noted the vessel Bella 1 has been “underway for over a month” and, at an average speed of 11 nautical miles per hour, may have “approximately a month of diesel remaining unless her speed decreases”.
The monitoring service further stated the vessel is “probably traveling in a southeasterly direction towards South Africa”.
