Satellite Data Reveals First Venezuela-Linked Oil Ship Seized by American Authorities is Currently Off the Texas Coast.
US agents boarding the deck of the Skipper on December 10th.
Orbital data and vessel monitoring information has confirmed that the oil tanker Skipper – the initial vessel apprehended by the United States for reportedly carrying sanctioned oil from the Venezuelan regime – is now positioned near of Texas.
A satellite firm's orbital photographs dated 21 December shows the tanker is in the vicinity of the port of Galveston, while AIS ship-tracking feeds from a maritime data service presently positions the vessel about 80km from the coast.
The Skipper was taken into custody by American officials on 10 December and has been blacklisted by multiple nations. When it was seized, it was falsely sailing under the ensign of Guyana.
This seizure was followed by the capture of a second oil vessel, the Centuries tanker. This ship – unlike the first vessel – was not yet under official restrictions when it was taken into American control.
American agencies are now pursuing a third such vessel, which has been named by the maritime risk group a risk firm as the Bella 1 tanker. President Donald Trump said yesterday that “we’ll end up getting it”.
Writing on the social media platform X, the TankerTrackers group noted the 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 drops”.
The monitoring service added the tanker is “probably heading in a southeasterly direction towards South Africa”.
