Imagery Image Reveals Initial Venezuelan Oil Ship Confiscated by US is Currently Near the Texas Coast.
American agents boarding the vessel of the Skipper on December 10th.
Orbital data and vessel monitoring data has confirmed that the crude carrier named Skipper – the first vessel seized by the US for allegedly transporting sanctioned oil from the Venezuelan regime – is now off the coast of the state of Texas.
Vantor orbital photographs from 21 December shows the ship is in the vicinity of Galveston, while AIS vessel-tracking data from a maritime data service currently positions the Skipper about 80km from the coast.
The tanker Skipper was taken into custody by US authorities on 10 December and has been blacklisted by multiple governments. When it was seized, it was falsely flying the flag of the nation of Guyana.
This interception was succeeded by the capture of a second tanker, the Centuries tanker. It – in contrast to the first vessel – was not yet under official restrictions when it was taken into American control.
American agencies are currently targeting a third ship, which has been identified by the risk management group Vanguard as the Bella 1 tanker. President Donald Trump said recently that “it will ultimately be secured”.
Writing on the social media platform X, the TankerTrackers group said the Bella 1 has been “underway for 39 days” and, at an typical pace of 11 nautical miles per hour, may have “approximately a month of fuel left unless her speed decreases”.
The group further stated the vessel is “probably heading south-east towards South Africa”.
