The United States will keep the oil and two tankers it seized off the coast of Venezuela this month, according to statements made by the White House.
Officials said the crude oil may either be sold, kept, or added to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, while the vessels themselves will remain under U.S. control.
The U.S. Coast Guard, with support from the U.S. Navy, seized the first vessel, Skipper, on 10 December. The tanker was carrying around 1.8 million barrels of crude oil and was reportedly flying a false Guyana flag.
Days later, the administration imposed a blockade on all sanctioned Venezuelan oil tankers entering or leaving the country.
Over the past weekend, U.S. personnel intercepted a second tanker, Centuries, suspected of transporting sanctioned Venezuelan crude.
The vessel had recently loaded roughly 2 million barrels of oil at Venezuela’s Jose Oil Terminal, according to shipping data provider Kpler.
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