Satellite Image Shows First Venezuelan Oil Ship Seized by American Authorities is Currently Near Texas.
US personnel roped onto the deck of the Skipper on December 10th.
Satellite imagery and ship tracking data has confirmed that the oil tanker named Skipper – the first vessel seized by the US for reportedly transporting embargoed crude from the Venezuelan regime – is currently positioned near of the state of Texas.
A satellite firm's orbital photographs from 21 December shows the tanker is in the vicinity of the port of Galveston, while AIS vessel-tracking feeds from a maritime data service presently positions the vessel about 50 miles from the coast.
The Skipper was taken into custody by American officials on the tenth of December and has been sanctioned by multiple governments. When it was intercepted, it was falsely flying the ensign of the nation of Guyana.
This seizure was succeeded by the interception of a second tanker, the Centuries. This ship – unlike the Skipper – was not yet under official restrictions when it was taken into US custody.
American agencies are currently targeting a third such vessel, which has been named by the risk management group Vanguard as the Bella 1 tanker. President Donald Trump said yesterday that “we’ll end up getting it”.
Writing on X, the maritime monitoring 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 remaining unless her speed drops”.
The monitoring service further stated the tanker is “likely traveling in a southeasterly direction towards the South African coast”.
