Why is the Woodside (ASX:WPL) share price having such a stellar start to the week?

The Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) share price is enjoying a strong start to the trading week.

Shares of the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) energy giant are currently up 2%, having earlier posted gains of 3%. That compares to the curtain gain of 0.6% posted by the ASX 200.

So, why is the Woodside share price off to a good start this week?

Crude oil surges on Russian hostilities

Numerous factors impact Woodside's performance including the company's management and the quality of its energy assets.

But energy prices certainly count amongst the big influencers on the Woodside share price.

And crude oil prices are rocketing following a wave of Western sanctions against Russia over its invasion of neighbouring Ukraine.

Brent crude jumped 4.9% over the past 24 hours to trade at US$102.76 per barrel.

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) leapt 5.8% to US$96.81 per barrel.

Don't forget, Russia is the world's third largest producer of crude oil.

Among the sanctions sending crude prices skywards is the West's agreement to deny some Russian banks access to the SWIFT bank messaging system.

If you're unfamiliar, SWIFT stands for Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication. And it's used by banks and companies the world over to deliver secure finance messaging.

So, why is removing some of Russia's banks from SWIFT sending crude oil prices, and the Woodside share price, higher?

According to Andy Lipow, president of Lipow Oil Associates (quoted by Bloomberg), "Removing some Russian banks from SWIFT could result in a disruption of oil supplies as buyers and sellers try to figure out how to navigate the new rules."

And these disruptions don't look to be over yet.

"The surge that we're seeing today was guaranteed, given the considerable deterioration of the Ukraine situation over the weekend. Markets should brace for plenty of aftershocks," said Vandana Hari, founder of Vanda Insights.

In bad news for motorists and energy intensive industries – but good news for the Woodside share price – Goldman Sachs had lifted its 1-month forecast for Brent to US$115 per barrel. That's up from the prior forecast of US$95 per barrel and 12% higher than the current Brent crude price.

Woodside share price snapshot

With today's intraday moves factored in, the Woodside share price is up 25.6% year-to-date. That compares to the 7.3% loss posted by the ASX 200 over that same time.

And, including its outsized final dividend payment (sorry, shares went ex-dividend last Thursday), Woodside pays a trailing dividend yield of 6.7%.