Satellite Image Shows Initial Venezuelan Tanker Confiscated by US is Currently Off Texas.
US agents boarding the deck of the Skipper on 10 December.
Satellite imagery and vessel monitoring information has verified that the crude carrier Skipper – the initial vessel apprehended by the US for reportedly transporting embargoed oil from Venezuela – is currently positioned near of the state of Texas.
A satellite firm's satellite imagery dated 21 December indicates the ship is near Galveston, while AIS vessel-tracking feeds from a maritime data service currently places the Skipper about 50 miles offshore.
The Skipper was taken into custody by American officials on 10 December and has been sanctioned by several governments. At the time it was seized, it was incorrectly flying the flag of the nation of Guyana.
This interception was succeeded by the interception of a another tanker, the Centuries tanker. It – unlike the Skipper – was not under official restrictions when it was taken into US custody.
US authorities are now pursuing a third such vessel, which has been identified by the maritime risk group Vanguard as the Bella 1 tanker. The US President stated recently that “we’ll end up getting it”.
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 speed drops”.
The group further stated the vessel is “probably traveling south-east towards the South African coast”.
