Drillers forced to slash spending during the oil slump may soon be facing another hurdle: a funding shortfall to the tune of $2 trillion over the next five years. That capital crunch creates the risk for underinvestment, perhaps affecting the availability of reserves in the longer term, according to a study published Wednesday by the Deloitte Center for Energy Solutions. The global oil and natural gas industry has curbed capital spending “to a point below the minimum required levels to replace reserves,” the Deloitte report said. “That is quite unusual,” Andrew Slaughter, executive director at the Center, said of the funding gap in an interview. “You’ve got to spend a lot of capital just to stand still, even without growth.” In the midst of the worst price downturn in a generation, producers have significantly cut down on costs. The global oil and gas industry has trimmed more than 350,000 […]