The United States has seized a crude oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela. The US government asserts the vessel was part of an "illicit oil shipping network supporting foreign terrorist organizations" involved in transporting sanctioned oil from Venezuela and Iran. Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yvan Gil has described the seizure as "international piracy" and claimed the US seeks Venezuela's energy resources.
The Operation
On December 6, US President Donald Trump announced the seizure, stating it was "the largest one ever seized actually." Attorney General Pam Bondi released footage of the operation on social media. Bondi confirmed that a seizure warrant for the tanker was executed by a joint force comprising the US Coast Guard, FBI, Homeland Security Investigations, and the Department of Defense.
A senior military official informed CBS News, a US partner, that the vessel had recently departed a port in Venezuela. The operation involved two helicopters, ten marines, ten US Coast Guard members, and special operations forces. The boarding of the vessel was conducted by the Maritime Security and Response Team, an elite Coast Guard unit established post-September 11 for counterterrorism and high-risk law enforcement boarding procedures. The Coast Guard led the operation with support from the Navy.
The Vessel
Maritime risk company Vanguard Tech identified the seized vessel as the Skipper. The company stated its belief that the ship had been "spoofing" its position, broadcasting a false location, for an extended period. The vessel, built 20 years ago, has also operated under the names Toyo and Adisa. Classified as a Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC), the Skipper measures 333 meters (1,092 ft) in length and 60 meters in width.
Vanguard Tech reported that the vessel is considered part of the "dark fleet," a term used for ships involved in smuggling sanctioned goods, and had been sanctioned by the United States for transporting Venezuelan oil exports. According to analysis by TankerTrackers.com and Venezuelan state oil company PDVSA, the Skipper is believed to have departed the José oil port on December 4 or 5 with approximately 1.8 million barrels of heavy crude oil. An estimated 200,000 barrels were reportedly transferred to another vessel prior to the seizure.
The US Treasury Department sanctioned the Skipper in 2022, citing alleged involvement in oil smuggling activities that generated revenue for Hezbollah and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Quds Force. MarineTraffic data indicated the vessel was sailing under the flag of Guyana when its position was last updated two days before the seizure. However, Guyana's Maritime Administration Department issued a statement on Wednesday evening clarifying that the Skipper was "falsely flying the Guyana Flag as it is not registered in Guyana." MarineTraffic data, which may be partial or incorrect due to spoofing, last showed the vessel near Iran in mid-September before arriving off the coast of Guyana in late October.
The Seized Oil
Regarding the crude oil onboard, President Trump stated, "We keep it, I guess...I assume we're going to keep the oil." If the vessel contained an estimated 1.6 million barrels of oil following the transfer of 200,000 barrels, its value would be approximately $95 million, based on global crude oil prices of $61 per barrel. The BBC has not independently verified the exact quantity of oil onboard.
Attorney General Bondi reiterated that the tanker had been sanctioned by the United States for multiple years due to its role in an "illicit oil shipping network supporting foreign terrorist organizations."
Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has accused the US of utilizing its military presence in the Caribbean and "war on drugs" efforts to attempt to depose him and gain access to Venezuela's oil resources. The US government has denied these allegations. Venezuela possesses the world's largest known reserves of crude oil. However, the oil's "heavy" and highly viscous nature necessitates specialized extraction equipment and knowledge. The nation's aging infrastructure and existing US sanctions have presented challenges to the monetization of these resources.
The USS Gerald Ford, described as the world's largest warship, was identified as a staging post for the tanker seizure operation.