Basically the cost of electricity should be the average cost of the network's generators. Or, as it is hard to calculate, the operating cost of the most expensive generator we have to put online. Peakers (pulsed coal and gas) are the most expensive to operate, so the price of electricity is based on their costs.
That we use gas and coal for baseload, however, is the dumbest thing EU (and German) legislation put us through.
Basically the cost of electricity should be the average cost of the network's generators. Or, as it is hard to calculate, the operating cost of the most expensive generator we have to put online. Peakers (pulsed coal and gas) are the most expensive to operate, so the price of electricity is based on their costs.
That we use gas and coal for baseload, however, is the dumbest thing EU (and German) legislation put us through.