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Orbital data and vessel monitoring data has confirmed that the oil tanker Skipper – the first vessel apprehended by the United States for reportedly carrying embargoed oil from Venezuela – is currently off the coast of Texas.

Vantor satellite imagery dated 21 December indicates the tanker is near Galveston, while Automatic Identification System vessel-tracking data from a maritime data service presently places the vessel about 50 miles offshore.

The tanker Skipper was seized by American officials on 10 December and has been sanctioned by several nations. At the time it was intercepted, it was incorrectly sailing under the flag of Guyana.

This seizure was followed by the capture of a second tanker, the Centuries. This ship – in contrast to the Skipper – was not under sanctions when it was taken into American control.

US authorities are currently pursuing a third such ship, which has been identified by the maritime risk group Vanguard as the Bella 1 tanker. The US President stated 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 over a month” and, at an average speed of 11 knots, may have “another 28 to 35 days of fuel left unless her speed decreases”.

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