Professionals within the oil and gas industry are receiving generous salaries due to a buoyant industry.

The Oil & Gas Global Salary Guide 2012, from Hays Oil & Gas and leading jobsite Oil and Gas Job Search, shows that the average salary of a full time UK oil professional is £55,850 – more than twice the national average of £26,244.

The guide also shows that expat labour within the industry is showing positive growth of 6.8% compared to last year.

Growth within the industry is expected to continue both in terms of salary (30%) and staffing levels (75%) in the next 12 months.

Matt Underhill, managing director of Hays Oil & Gas, says: “Last year we reported a 30% rise in contractor wages for UK professionals.  This was particularly encouraging for UK based oil and gas professionals as the rates are a good indicator of the state of the job market, being more reactive to short-term changes in demand for skills.”

This comes as BP has announced that it will increase its annual UK graduate recruitment by 50% – this will equate to nearly 250 graduates in 2012.

The oil and gas company is also giving the new graduates the opportunity to work with the London 2012 Organising Committee (LOCOG).

Emma Judge, Head of UK Graduate Recruitment, BP, says: “BP is hiring more bright young minds than ever before and I’m sure the UK’s young science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) community will be pleased to hear we are ramping up our recruitment again this year.”