Imagery Image Reveals Initial Venezuelan Tanker Confiscated by American Authorities is Currently Off Texas.
American agents roped onto the vessel of the tanker Skipper on December 10th.
Orbital data and ship tracking information has confirmed that the crude carrier Skipper – the initial vessel apprehended by the United States for allegedly transporting embargoed oil from Venezuela – is currently off the coast of the state of Texas.
Vantor orbital photographs from 21 December shows the ship is in the vicinity of the port of Galveston, while AIS vessel-tracking feeds from MarineTraffic presently positions the Skipper about 80km from the coast.
The tanker Skipper was seized by American officials on 10 December and has been sanctioned by multiple governments. When it was intercepted, it was falsely sailing under the ensign of the nation of Guyana.
This interception was succeeded by the capture of a another oil vessel, the Centuries tanker. It – in contrast to the Skipper – was not under official restrictions when it was brought under American control.
American agencies are currently targeting a third such vessel, which has been named by the maritime risk group a risk firm as the Bella 1. The US President stated recently that “it will ultimately be secured”.
Writing on X, the TankerTrackers group said the vessel Bella 1 has been “in transit for over a month” and, at an average speed of 11 nautical miles per hour, may have “another 28 to 35 days of diesel remaining unless her velocity decreases”.
The group further stated the vessel is “probably heading south-east towards the South African coast”.