Imagery Image Reveals First Venezuelan Oil Ship Confiscated by US is Currently Off Texas.
American agents boarding the vessel of the Skipper on 10 December.
Satellite imagery and ship tracking data has verified that the oil tanker Skipper – the first vessel seized by the US for allegedly transporting embargoed oil from Venezuela – is now off the coast of the state of Texas.
A satellite firm's satellite imagery dated 21 December indicates the ship is near the port of Galveston, while Automatic Identification System ship-tracking data from MarineTraffic presently positions the vessel about 50 miles from the coast.
The Skipper was taken into custody by American officials on 10 December and has been blacklisted by several governments. At the time it was seized, it was incorrectly flying the flag of Guyana.
This interception was followed by the interception of a second oil vessel, the Centuries tanker. It – in contrast to the Skipper – was not yet under sanctions when it was brought under US custody.
American agencies are now targeting a third ship, which has been named by the risk management group Vanguard as the Bella 1. The US President said recently that “we’ll end up getting it”.
Writing on X, the TankerTrackers group noted the vessel Bella 1 has been “underway for over a month” and, at an typical pace of 11 knots, may have “another 28 to 35 days of fuel left unless her speed decreases”.
The group further stated the tanker is “likely heading in a southeasterly direction towards South Africa”.
