🔗 Share this article Imagery Data Reveals First Venezuela-Linked Oil Ship Confiscated by American Authorities is Currently Near the Texas Coast. American personnel roped onto the vessel of the Skipper on December 10th. Orbital data and ship tracking information has verified that the crude carrier Skipper – the initial vessel apprehended by the US for reportedly carrying sanctioned crude from Venezuela – is currently off the coast of the state of Texas. Vantor satellite imagery from 21 December indicates the ship is in the vicinity of Galveston, while AIS vessel-tracking data from MarineTraffic currently places the vessel about 80km offshore. The tanker Skipper was seized by US authorities on the tenth of December and has been blacklisted by multiple nations. When it was intercepted, it was falsely sailing under the flag of Guyana. This interception was followed by the interception of a second tanker, the Centuries. It – unlike the Skipper – was not yet under sanctions when it was taken into American control. US authorities are currently pursuing a third such ship, which has been identified by the risk management group Vanguard as the Bella 1 tanker. President Donald Trump said yesterday that “it will ultimately be secured”. Writing on the social media platform X, the maritime monitoring group noted the vessel 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 fuel remaining unless her speed decreases”. The monitoring service added the vessel is “probably traveling south-east towards the South African coast”.