Satellite Image Shows Initial Venezuela-Linked Oil Ship Seized by US is Currently Off the Texas Coast.

Satellite imagery and ship tracking information has verified that the oil tanker Skipper – the initial vessel apprehended by the US for allegedly transporting sanctioned crude from Venezuela – is currently off the coast of the state of Texas.

A satellite firm's orbital photographs from 21 December indicates the ship is near the port of Galveston, while Automatic Identification System vessel-tracking data from MarineTraffic currently places the Skipper about 80km from the coast.

The tanker Skipper was taken into custody by American officials on the tenth of December and has been blacklisted 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 second tanker, the Centuries tanker. This ship – in contrast to the first vessel – was not yet under official restrictions when it was taken into US custody.

American agencies 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 “we’ll end up getting it”.

Writing on X, the maritime monitoring group said the Bella 1 has been “underway for over a month” and, at an average speed of 11 nautical miles per hour, may have “another 28 to 35 days of fuel remaining unless her velocity drops”.

The group further stated the tanker is “likely heading in a southeasterly direction towards South Africa”.