U.S. Sanctions Six Shipowners and Prepares to Seize More Venezuela Tankers

Expanding Sanctions and the First Enforcement Actions

As the United States prepared to intercept and seize more tankers off Venezuela, six shipping companies that owned sanctions-evading very large crude carriers were designated yesterday, with more expected in the coming days.

The six companies were each the registered owners of six VLCCs (White Crane IMO 9323429; Kiara M IMO 9285823; Constance IMO 9237773; Lattafa IMO 9245794; Monique IMO 9311270; and Tamia IMO 9315642) that had been transporting Venezuelan crude since May.

This marks the first time the second Trump administration has targeted Venezuela’s oil sector. The measures were part of a larger package that also sanctioned three family members and a business associate of Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro.

AIS Manipulation and Operational Anomalies

The companies’ tankers loaded from Venezuela’s national oil company PDVSA, designated back in January 2019, with the vessels identified as blocked property under the executive order.

Four of the six VLCCs manipulated their AIS signals to falsely appear in other locations while loading Venezuelan cargoes in May, June, September, and October, according to the U.S. Department of the Treasury.

In the past 18 hours, three of the VLCCs halted normal sailing and were either loitering or transmitting AIS signals inconsistent with their movements, Windward data show.

None of the ships signaled via AIS that they had called at a Venezuelan port over a seven-month period ending in December cited by the United States. This type of AIS manipulation to obscure port calls is a common deceptive shipping practice.

Lattafa, Monique, White Crane, Tamia, and Kiara M all manipulated their AIS to appear in waters off Lomé, Togo. Tankers calling Venezuela have used this tactic since at least 2020 to falsely signal their location in the region.

Monique and Tamia also spoofed their location off Trinidad and Tobago in June and showed extensive loitering trails in the Caribbean off Curaçao.

Rising Enforcement Pressure and Maritime Security Context

U.S. forces seized the dark-fleet, sanctioned VLCC Skipper (IMO 9304667) in the Caribbean Sea on Wednesday, reportedly laden with about 1.8 million barrels of oil. The vessel was falsely flagged with Guyana, rendering it stateless and permitting national authorities to board.

More interceptions of oil cargoes and tankers are planned.

There are at least seven other falsely flagged, sanctioned tankers similar to Skipper loitering off Venezuela, making them prime targets for further intervention as the U.S. administration intensifies pressure on the Maduro government by targeting its oil revenues.

These physical interdictions of Venezuelan-trading tankers are occurring against the backdrop of the largest U.S. naval buildup in the Caribbean in nearly 40 years, amid administration claims that Maduro’s regime is flooding the country with illegal drugs.