Imagery Data Reveals Initial Venezuelan Tanker Seized by US is Now Near Texas.
US personnel roped onto the vessel of the tanker Skipper on 10 December.
Satellite imagery and vessel monitoring information has confirmed that the oil tanker Skipper – the initial vessel seized by the US for allegedly carrying sanctioned oil from the Venezuelan regime – is now off the coast of the state of Texas.
Vantor orbital photographs dated 21 December shows the ship is near the port of Galveston, while Automatic Identification System vessel-tracking data from MarineTraffic presently places 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. At the time it was seized, it was incorrectly flying the flag of Guyana.
This seizure 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 vessel, which has been identified by the risk management group Vanguard as the Bella 1 tanker. The US President stated yesterday that “we’ll end up getting it”.
Writing on the social media platform X, the TankerTrackers group noted the Bella 1 has been “in transit for 39 days” and, at an average speed of 11 knots, may have “approximately a month of diesel remaining unless her speed drops”.
The group further stated the vessel is “likely heading in a southeasterly direction towards the South African coast”.
