US authorities have intercepted and boarded an oil tanker carrying Venezuelan crude east of Barbados, marking the second seizure of a vessel linked to Venezuela’s oil trade and the first since President Donald Trump ordered a blockade on sanctioned tankers moving to and from the country.
The US Coast Guard, backed by the Department of Defense, carried out the pre-dawn boarding on Saturday, according to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. Noem said the action was part of Washington’s push to shut down oil flows it says are funding criminal and narco-terrorism networks in the region.
This marks the second time US forces have apprehended an oil tanker en route from Venezuela. “We will find you, and we will stop you,” Noem said in a social media post.
The latest case follows the seizure of the tanker Skipper on December 10 and comes days after Trump announced what he called a “total and complete” blockade of sanctioned oil tankers entering or departing Venezuelan waters.
The vessel boarded this weekend has been identified as the Panama-flagged VLCC Centuries. While the ship does not appear on current US, EU, UK or UN sanctions lists, analysts say it has a history of carrying sanctioned Venezuelan cargoes.
According to Kpler, satellite imagery shows the tanker loading crude at Venezuela’s Jose oil terminal in recent days. The data firm also said the vessel had been spoofing its AIS signal.
Data from TankerTrackers.com shows the HK/Chinese-owned tanker loaded around 1.8m barrels of Merey-16 crude at Jose between December 7 and 11. This was its seventh export of Venezuelan oil since 2020.
Satellite imagery cited by TankerTrackers suggests the vessel was escorted by Venezuelan navy ships until it reached the edge of Venezuela’s exclusive economic zone, after which it continued alone. The boarding reportedly took place outside that zone.
The interception comes as Venezuela moves to keep oil exports flowing. Sources familiar with PDVSA operations said Caracas has authorised two VLCCs to sail for China, each carrying about 1.8m barrels of Merey crude. The US has said it will not allow sanctioned vessels to leave Venezuelan waters, though the two tankers are not currently on the US sanctions list.
With a second seizure in as many weeks, shipowners, traders and insurers are now watching closely to see how aggressively the US enforces the new blockade — and how far beyond Venezuelan waters that reach may extend.
In a pre-dawn action early this morning on Dec. 20, the US Coast Guard with the support of the Department of War apprehended an oil tanker that was last docked in Venezuela.
The United States will continue to pursue the illicit movement of sanctioned oil that is used to fund… pic.twitter.com/nSZ4mi6axc
US reportedly seizes second tanker near Venezuela
US forces have reportedly seized an oil tanker identified as the Panama-flagged VLCC Centuries, which had departed from the Tanjung Pelepas anchorage in Malaysia on October 17. The vessel was transmitting spoofed AIS positions,… pic.twitter.com/QK3s2gLTH5
