Satellite Image Reveals First Venezuelan Tanker Confiscated by US is Currently Near Texas.
American personnel boarding the vessel of the tanker Skipper on 10 December.
Orbital data and ship tracking data has confirmed that the oil tanker Skipper – the initial vessel apprehended by the United States for allegedly transporting sanctioned oil from the Venezuelan regime – is currently off the coast of the state of Texas.
A satellite firm's orbital photographs from 21 December indicates the ship is near Galveston, while AIS vessel-tracking data from MarineTraffic presently positions the Skipper about 50 miles offshore.
The tanker Skipper was taken into custody by American officials on the tenth of December and has been sanctioned by several governments. When it was seized, it was incorrectly sailing under the flag of Guyana.
This interception was followed by the interception of a another tanker, the Centuries tanker. This ship – in contrast to the first vessel – was not yet under official restrictions when it was brought under American control.
US authorities are currently targeting a third such ship, which has been named by the risk management group a risk firm as the Bella 1 tanker. President Donald Trump stated yesterday that “it will ultimately be secured”.
Writing on X, the TankerTrackers group said the vessel Bella 1 has been “in transit for over a month” and, at an average speed of 11 nautical miles per hour, may have “another 28 to 35 days of diesel remaining unless her speed drops”.
The monitoring service further stated the vessel is “likely heading south-east towards the South African coast”.
