Contingencies and commitments - Narrative (Details) $ in Millions			1 Months Ended			3 Months Ended	9 Months Ended
	Oct. 31, 2023 USD ($) Cases	Jul. 29, 2022 a People Structure	Sep. 30, 2023 USD ($) Trial	Jun. 30, 2023 USD ($) Plaintiff	Sep. 30, 2020 a Structure	Sep. 30, 2023 USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2023 USD ($) Plaintiff
Multnomah County Circuit Court Oregon 10 Class Members [Member]
Commitments and Contingencies [Line Items]
Loss contingency, number of trials | Trial			2
Multnomah County Circuit Court Oregon [Member]
Commitments and Contingencies [Line Items]
Loss contingency, number of trials | Trial			3
Berkshire Hathaway Energy Company [Member] | PacifiCorp [Member] | Wildfires [Member]
Commitments and Contingencies [Line Items]
Estimated pre-tax probable loss			$ 2,400			$ 2,400	$ 2,400
Loss contingency, pre tax probable loss before insurance recoveries						1,400	1,900
Loss contingency, probable losses net of expected insurance recoveries						$ 1,300	$ 1,700
Berkshire Hathaway Energy Company [Member] | PacifiCorp [Member] | 2020 Wildfires [Member]
Commitments and Contingencies [Line Items]
Number of named plaintiffs | Plaintiff				17			17
Loss contingency, sought amount							$ 8,000
Loss contingency, awarded value				$ 90
Number of structures destroyed | Structure					2,000
Berkshire Hathaway Energy Company [Member] | PacifiCorp [Member] | 2022 Wildfire [Member]
Commitments and Contingencies [Line Items]
Number of acres aggregate of wildfire | a		60,000
Number of structures destroyed | Structure		185
Number of structures damaged | Structure		11
Number of injuries in wildfire | People		12
Number of fatalities in wildfire | People		4
Berkshire Hathaway Energy Company [Member] | PacifiCorp [Member] | Economic and Property Damages [Member] | 2020 Wildfires [Member]
Commitments and Contingencies [Line Items]
Loss contingency, awarded value				4
Berkshire Hathaway Energy Company [Member] | PacifiCorp [Member] | Non-Economic Damages [Member] | 2020 Wildfires [Member]
Commitments and Contingencies [Line Items]
Loss contingency, awarded value				68
Berkshire Hathaway Energy Company [Member] | PacifiCorp [Member] | Punitive Damages [Member] | 2020 Wildfires [Member]
Commitments and Contingencies [Line Items]
Loss contingency, awarded value				$ 18
Berkshire Hathaway Energy Company [Member] | HomeServices of America [Member] | Antitrust Cases [Member] | Subsequent Event [Member]
Commitments and Contingencies [Line Items]
Number of cases | Cases	4
Berkshire Hathaway Energy Company [Member] | HomeServices of America [Member] | Antitrust Cases [Member] | Trial Commenced [Member] | Subsequent Event [Member]
Commitments and Contingencies [Line Items]
Loss contingency, awarded value	$ 1,800
Number of cases | Cases	1
Berkshire Hathaway Energy Company [Member] | HomeServices of America [Member] | Antitrust Cases [Member] | Inestimatable Loss [Member] | Subsequent Event [Member]
Commitments and Contingencies [Line Items]
Number of cases | Cases	3
Berkshire Hathaway Energy Company [Member] | Minimum [Member] | PacifiCorp [Member] | 2020 Wildfires [Member]
Commitments and Contingencies [Line Items]
Number of acres aggregate of wildfire | a					500,000
Subsidiary [Member] | Berkshire Hathaway Energy [Member]
Commitments and Contingencies [Line Items]
Percentage of subsidiary ownership			92.00%			92.00%	92.00%