The “Skipper” —the oil tanker seized by the United States off the Venezuelan coast— is just the tip of the iceberg, as the pirate oil fleet utilized by Nicolás Maduro’s regime consists of numerous vessels operating illegally to violate U.S. sanctions — both against the dictatorship and PDVSA — in order to secure funding.
This was revealed by an investigation conducted by the NGO in exile “Transparencia Venezuela,” which found that a complex network of “phantom” ships, false identities, and radar evasion tactics constitute the mechanism for transporting Venezuelan hydrocarbons.
The investigation established that 41% of tankers arriving in the country during November operated under irregular schemes in defiance of international blockade and military operations in the Caribbean.
The “Skipper” Case: A Chronicle of Modern Piracy
The recent seizure of the “Skipper” by U.S. authorities off the Venezuelan coast exposed the extreme tactics of Nicolás Maduro’s regime to sell crude oil on the black market.
The “Skipper” —seized on December 10 in Caribbean waters while leaving Venezuela— was not a new entity on the radar of intelligence agencies, as revealed by the Transparencia Venezuela investigation. The ship, owned by Nigerian company Triton Navigation Corp, operated under a fraudulent identity.
False Flag: The vessel was sailing under a Guyanese flag, but authorities in that nation denied any official registration of the ship. This fact indicates the use of a phony registration.
Ties to Terrorism: “Adisa” was the name under which the Skipper operated previously. After being sanctioned by OFAC for transporting Iranian oil and maintaining operational ties with the Hezbollah group, it continued to operate under this new name.
Phantom Status: Although it was listed internationally as “out of service” since 2024, the Skipper was still traversing the globe. In September 2025, it was tracked near India and in the Strait of Hormuz, making erratic movements before heading to the Caribbean. A recent report of activities at the “José Antonio Anzoátegui” Oil Storage and Shipping Terminal (TAECJAA/TOJ) published by Venezuela Política confirms that the Skipper loaded Merey 16 crude headed for Matanzas, Cuba, for the company Cubametales. Nicolás Maduro claimed the vessel was carrying 1.9 million barrels, but the report indicates 1,110,000 barrels. The discrepancy suggests that the Venezuelan regime lost between USD 50 and 100 million on this transaction due to inefficiency and forced discounts.
Impact of U.S. Military Deployment
The investigation indicates a decline in maritime traffic in November —98 vessels compared to 112 in October— coinciding with the unprecedented military presence of the United States in Caribbean waters, where at least six missile destroyers patrol key routes.
This pressure forced the marketing networks to take extreme precautions. Of the 98 detected tankers:
17 sailed with the AIS (Automatic Identification System) turned off, becoming “stealth vessels.”
14 were ships already explicitly sanctioned by international bodies.
13 illegal transshipment operations were detected in the Amuay area, where crude is passed from one ship to another at sea to erase the trace of Venezuelan origin.
Interestingly, while the irregular fleet feels the pressure, authorized Chevron vessels increased from 3 to 8 within a month, sending crude directly to terminals in Texas and Louisiana, marking a stark contrast between legal and underground routes.
The Route to the East and the Use of Cryptocurrencies
Transparencia Venezuela’s report confirms that China remains the destination for 80% of Venezuelan production. However, to avoid direct sanctions, the crude is sent via Malaysia, which acts as a relabeling hub.
It is important to note that —as we indicated in Sin Filtros— much of the Venezuelan oil sent to China is not a sale but part of the payment for a massive debt that Maduro’s regime has with the Asian nation.
Furthermore, to add more opacity to the situation, payments for these transactions no longer go through the traditional banking system (SWIFT). The regime uses stable cryptocurrencies (mainly USDT) in its financial operations, allowing funds to flow undetected by U.S. Treasury controls.
The Shadow of Drug Trafficking: Oil or Cocaine?
The investigation by Transparencia Venezuela is particularly alarming as it reveals the existence of a possible dual cargo in the pirate oil fleet — “dark fleet” might be a better term— as the route from Venezuela to Senegal (West Africa) has intensified.
Researchers ask: *Are the phantom ships transporting drug shipments alongside crude oil? This question is by no means far-fetched, considering the close relationship between irregular oil flows and the routes identified by media outlets as being used for Colombian cocaine trafficking to Europe.
They also wonder: Does the lack of inspections on these sanctioned ships turn them into the perfect vehicle for transnational organized crime?
We are witnessing a state that, to survive economically, has been forced to sell off its most valuable resource —oil— at discounts of up to 20% compared to market prices, and to operate in a gray area where national sovereignty is diluted in a network of shell companies, false flags, and alliances with globally sanctioned actors.