Imagery Data Shows Initial Venezuela-Linked Tanker Seized by US is Now Off Texas.
US personnel roped onto the vessel of the Skipper on December 10th.
Orbital data and vessel monitoring information has confirmed that the crude carrier Skipper – the initial vessel apprehended by the US for reportedly transporting embargoed crude from Venezuela – is currently off the coast of the state of Texas.
Vantor satellite imagery from 21 December indicates the ship is near Galveston, while AIS vessel-tracking feeds from MarineTraffic currently positions the Skipper about 50 miles offshore.
The Skipper was taken into custody by US authorities on the tenth of December and has been blacklisted by several nations. At the time it was intercepted, it was falsely flying the flag of the nation of Guyana.
This seizure was followed by the interception of a second oil vessel, the Centuries. This ship – unlike the Skipper – was not yet under sanctions when it was brought under US custody.
US authorities are now pursuing a third vessel, which has been identified by the risk management group a risk firm as the Bella 1 tanker. The US President stated recently that “it will ultimately be secured”.
Writing on X, the TankerTrackers group noted the Bella 1 has been “in transit for 39 days” and, at an typical pace of 11 knots, may have “another 28 to 35 days of diesel left unless her velocity drops”.
The group further stated the tanker is “likely traveling in a southeasterly direction towards South Africa”.
