Tesla's electric Semi faces a long, slow, uphill climbTesla's flashy new electric Semi truck isn't very practical for most freight haulers under pressure to reduce their carbon footprint.Why it matters: Driving what CEO Elon Musk calls "the most bad-ass rig on the road" doesn't matter to commercial truck operators, who are worried about hitting tougher emissions targets as well as long-term reliability and total cost of ownership.- "Not very impressive — moving a cargo of chips (average weight per pack 52 grams) cannot in any way be said to be definitive proof of concept," said Oliver Dixon, senior analyst at consultancy Guidehouse, per Reuters.The alternatives: One Bill Gates-backed startup, ClearFlame, is promoting a simpler way for freight haulers to meet sustainability goals using their existing diesel trucks.- The system is 30% to 40% less expensive than diesel, electric, natural gas or hydrogen on a total cost of ownership basis, co-founder and CEO BJ Johnson tells Axios."