🔗 Share this article

Satellite imagery and ship tracking information has confirmed that the oil tanker Skipper – the first vessel apprehended by the US for reportedly transporting sanctioned oil from Venezuela – is now positioned near of Texas.

A satellite firm's orbital photographs dated 21 December indicates the ship is near the port of Galveston, while AIS vessel-tracking data from MarineTraffic currently positions the Skipper about 50 miles from the coast.

The tanker Skipper was taken into custody by American officials on 10 December and has been sanctioned by multiple nations. At the time it was seized, it was falsely flying the ensign of the nation of Guyana.

This seizure was succeeded by the capture of a another oil vessel, the Centuries tanker. It – unlike the first vessel – was not under official restrictions when it was taken into American control.

American agencies are now pursuing a third vessel, which has been named by the risk management group Vanguard as the Bella 1. The US President said recently that “we’ll end up getting it”.

Writing on the social media platform X, the maritime monitoring group noted the Bella 1 has been “underway for 39 days” and, at an average speed of 11 nautical miles per hour, may have “another 28 to 35 days of fuel left unless her velocity decreases”.

The monitoring service further stated the tanker is “likely traveling south-east towards the South African coast”.