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Orbital data and ship tracking information has confirmed that the oil tanker named Skipper – the initial vessel apprehended by the US for reportedly carrying sanctioned crude from Venezuela – is now off the coast of the state of Texas.

Vantor satellite imagery from 21 December indicates the ship is in the vicinity of the port of Galveston, while Automatic Identification System ship-tracking data from a maritime data service presently positions the Skipper about 80km from the coast.

The tanker Skipper was taken into custody 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 succeeded by the interception of a another oil vessel, the Centuries. This ship – in contrast to the Skipper – was not yet under official restrictions when it was taken into American control.

American agencies are currently targeting a third ship, which has been named by the maritime risk group Vanguard as the Bella 1 tanker. President Donald Trump said yesterday that “we’ll end up getting it”.

Writing on the social media platform X, the TankerTrackers group noted the vessel Bella 1 has been “underway for over a month” and, at an typical pace of 11 knots, may have “another 28 to 35 days of diesel remaining unless her velocity decreases”.

The group further stated the tanker is “likely heading south-east towards South Africa”.