Satellite Data Shows Initial Venezuelan Oil Ship Confiscated by American Authorities is Now Off the Texas Coast.
American personnel roped onto the deck of the tanker Skipper on 10 December.
Satellite imagery and ship tracking data has verified that the oil tanker Skipper – the initial vessel apprehended by the United States for allegedly carrying embargoed crude from the Venezuelan regime – is now positioned near of the state of Texas.
A satellite firm's satellite imagery from 21 December shows the tanker is near Galveston, while Automatic Identification System vessel-tracking feeds from a maritime data service currently places the vessel about 80km offshore.
The tanker Skipper was seized by American officials on 10 December and has been sanctioned by several governments. At the time it was seized, it was falsely sailing under the flag of the nation of Guyana.
This interception was followed by the interception of a second tanker, the Centuries tanker. This ship – unlike the Skipper – was not under sanctions when it was brought under American control.
American agencies are now pursuing a third vessel, which has been identified by the risk management group Vanguard as the Bella 1. The US President stated recently that “it will ultimately be secured”.
Writing on the social media platform X, the maritime monitoring group said the vessel Bella 1 has been “underway for 39 days” and, at an average speed of 11 knots, may have “approximately a month of fuel left unless her velocity decreases”.
The monitoring service further stated the vessel is “probably traveling in a southeasterly direction towards South Africa”.
