The US used two guided-missile destroyers during the operation to seize the Mariner tanker, Business Insider reported, citing its sources.
A US military spokesman, quoted by the portal, noted that the destroyers USS Bulkeley and USS Paul Ignatius "provided support" in the operation to seize the tanker in the area between the United Kingdom and Iceland after weeks of chasing the vessel in the Atlantic Ocean.
Vitol, one of the world's largest traders, will send its first shipment of petroleum solvent from the United States to Venezuela this weekend under an agreement with the US government, Reuters reported, citing two sources.
According to the information received, the company has chartered the Hellespont Protector specifically for the transport of naphtha. The solvent is used to liquefy Venezuelan crude oil, making it easier to transport and process.
In Venezuela, Italian energy giant "ENI" (ENI) produces gas for domestic consumption and has a nominal loan of approximately three billion dollars owed to it by the Venezuelan state-owned oil and gas company PDVSA (Petróleos de Venezuela, Sociedad Anonima), BNR reported.
In the South American country, "ENI" produces gas entirely intended for supplying the state and for generating electricity. The company operates an offshore field in a 50/50 consortium with the Spanish company "Repsol" (Repsol).
In 2024, net production in the South American country amounted to 62,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day, which is approximately 3.5% of the group's total production.
The Italian news agency Agenzia Nova recalls that in March 2025, the US administration imposed sanctions that effectively deprived "ENI" from the possibility of gas production being paid for with oil deliveries. This ultimately led to a total nominal loan of around $3 billion from the Venezuelan state company PDVSA to "ENI".
In an interview with RAI 1, Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani explained that "ENI"'s position in Venezuela and the credits it holds for gas production will be the subject of negotiations with Venezuela and the Americans".