Satellite Data Shows First Venezuela-Linked Tanker Confiscated by American Authorities is Currently Near the Texas Coast.
US personnel roped onto the deck of the tanker Skipper on December 10th.
Satellite imagery and vessel monitoring data has verified that the crude carrier Skipper – the first vessel apprehended by the US for reportedly transporting sanctioned crude from Venezuela – is currently off the coast of the state of Texas.
A satellite firm's satellite imagery from 21 December indicates the tanker is near the port of Galveston, while Automatic Identification System ship-tracking feeds from a maritime data service currently places the vessel about 50 miles offshore.
The Skipper was seized by American officials on 10 December and has been blacklisted by multiple governments. When it was intercepted, it was falsely sailing under the ensign of the nation of Guyana.
This seizure was followed by the capture of a second tanker, the Centuries tanker. It – unlike the first vessel – was not yet under official restrictions when it was brought under American control.
US authorities are now pursuing a third such ship, which has been identified by the maritime risk 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 TankerTrackers group noted the vessel Bella 1 has been “underway for over a month” and, at an typical pace of 11 nautical miles per hour, may have “another 28 to 35 days of fuel remaining unless her velocity drops”.
The group further stated the tanker is “probably traveling south-east towards South Africa”.
