Satellite Image Reveals Initial Venezuelan Oil Ship Confiscated by American Authorities is Currently Near the Texas Coast.

Orbital data and ship tracking information has confirmed that the oil tanker Skipper – the first vessel apprehended by the United States for allegedly carrying embargoed crude from Venezuela – is currently positioned near of Texas.

Vantor satellite imagery from 21 December indicates the ship is near Galveston, while Automatic Identification System vessel-tracking feeds from MarineTraffic currently places the Skipper about 80km from the coast.

The Skipper was seized by American officials on the tenth of December and has been blacklisted by multiple governments. When it was seized, it was incorrectly flying the ensign of the nation of Guyana.

This interception was followed by the capture of a second tanker, the Centuries. It – unlike the Skipper – was not under sanctions when it was brought under American control.

American agencies are currently pursuing a third such vessel, which has been named by the maritime risk group a risk firm as the Bella 1 tanker. The US President said yesterday that “it will ultimately be secured”.

Writing on the social media platform X, the maritime monitoring group said the Bella 1 has been “underway for over a month” and, at an average speed of 11 knots, may have “another 28 to 35 days of diesel remaining unless her speed decreases”.

The monitoring service added the vessel is “likely traveling in a southeasterly direction towards South Africa”.