Satellite Data Reveals First Venezuelan Tanker Confiscated by American Authorities is Currently Near the Texas Coast.
US agents boarding the vessel of the Skipper on December 10th.
Satellite imagery and ship tracking information has confirmed that the crude carrier named Skipper – the first vessel seized by the United States for reportedly transporting embargoed oil from the Venezuelan regime – is currently off the coast of Texas.
A satellite firm's orbital photographs from 21 December shows the ship is in the vicinity of the port of Galveston, while Automatic Identification System ship-tracking data from MarineTraffic presently places the vessel about 80km from the coast.
The tanker Skipper was seized by US authorities on the tenth of December and has been sanctioned by several nations. At the time it was intercepted, it was falsely sailing under the flag of the nation of Guyana.
This interception was succeeded by the interception of a another oil vessel, the Centuries tanker. This ship – in contrast to the first vessel – was not under official restrictions when it was brought under American control.
US authorities are now targeting a third such vessel, which has been named by the risk management group Vanguard as the Bella 1 tanker. The US President said recently that “it will ultimately be secured”.
Writing on X, the maritime monitoring group said the Bella 1 has been “underway for 39 days” and, at an average speed of 11 nautical miles per hour, may have “another 28 to 35 days of fuel left unless her speed drops”.
The group further stated the vessel is “likely traveling south-east towards the South African coast”.
