🔗 Share this article Imagery Image Shows First Venezuelan Oil Ship Confiscated by US is Currently Off the Texas Coast. US personnel roped onto the deck of the Skipper on 10 December. Satellite imagery and ship tracking data has confirmed that the oil tanker Skipper – the initial vessel seized by the US for reportedly carrying embargoed oil from Venezuela – is currently positioned near of the state of Texas. A satellite firm's satellite imagery dated 21 December indicates the tanker is in the vicinity of the port of Galveston, while Automatic Identification System ship-tracking data from MarineTraffic currently positions the vessel about 50 miles offshore. The tanker Skipper was seized by American officials on 10 December and has been sanctioned by multiple nations. When it was intercepted, it was falsely sailing under the flag of the nation of Guyana. This interception was succeeded by the capture of a another oil vessel, the Centuries. This ship – in contrast to the Skipper – was not yet under official restrictions when it was brought under US custody. US authorities are now targeting a third vessel, which has been identified by the maritime risk group Vanguard as the Bella 1. President Donald Trump stated yesterday that “it will ultimately be secured”. Writing on the social media platform X, the TankerTrackers group noted the vessel Bella 1 has been “underway for 39 days” and, at an typical pace of 11 knots, may have “another 28 to 35 days of fuel remaining unless her speed drops”. The group added the vessel is “likely heading south-east towards the South African coast”.