Litigation, Other Commitments and Contingencies, and Disclosures about Guarantees, Disclosures about Guarantees (Details) (USD $)			1 Months Ended	12 Months Ended				1 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2013 Lignite Mining Agreement Guarantee [Member] Cleco Power [Member] Financial Guarantee [Member]	Apr. 30, 2011 Acadia Unit 2 Transaction [Member] Guarantee Issued to Cleco Power on behalf of Acadia [Member]	Dec. 31, 2013 Acadia Unit 2 Transaction [Member] Guarantee Issued to Cleco Power on behalf of Acadia [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Acadia Unit 2 Transaction [Member] Guarantee Issued to Cleco Power on behalf of Acadia [Member]	Apr. 29, 2011 Acadia Unit 2 Transaction [Member] Guarantee Issued to Cleco Power on behalf of Acadia [Member]	Dec. 31, 2013 2004 sale of Perryville facility [Member] Guarantee Issued to Entergy Louisiana and Entergy Gulf States for Performance Obligations of Perryville [Member]	Feb. 28, 2010 Acadia Unit 1 Transaction [Member] Guarantee Issued to Cleco Power on behalf of Acadia [Member]	Dec. 31, 2013 Acadia Unit 1 Transaction [Member] Guarantee Issued to Cleco Power on behalf of Acadia [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Acadia Unit 1 Transaction [Member] Guarantee Issued to Cleco Power on behalf of Acadia [Member]	Feb. 23, 2010 Acadia Unit 1 Transaction [Member] Guarantee Issued to Cleco Power on behalf of Acadia [Member]	Feb. 28, 2010 Acadia Unit 1 Transaction [Member] Cleco Power [Member] Guarantee Issued to Cleco Power on behalf of Acadia [Member]
Guarantor Obligations [Line Items]
Guarantor Obligations, Maximum Exposure, Undiscounted	$ 13,225,000	$ 98,100,000		$ 298,800,000			$ 42,400,000	$ 10,000,000				$ 30,000,000
Disclosures about Guarantees [Abstract]
Liability recognized on the balance sheets	4,906,000	3,800,000		900,000			200,000
Fair value of indemnification liability recorded						21,800,000			0		13,500,000
Guarantor Obligations, Term			P3Y					P3Y
Maximum residual value of indemnification obligation				200,000
Income from contractual expiration of indemnification				6,900,000	14,000,000				400,000	7,200,000
Off-balance sheet commitments, expected termination dates [Abstract]
NET AMOUNT COMMITTED	13,225,000
LESS THAN ONE YEAR	3,725,000
1-3 YEARS	8,000,000
3-5 YEARS	1,000,000
MORE THAN 5 YEARS	500,000
On-balance sheet guarantees, expected termination dates [Abstract]
NET AMOUNT COMMITTED	4,906,000	3,800,000		900,000			200,000
LESS THAN ONE YEAR	0
1-3 YEARS	900,000
3-5 YEARS	0
MORE THAN 5 YEARS	4,006,000
Total off-balance sheet commitments and on-balance sheet guarantees, expected termination dates [Abstract]
Total NET AMOUNT COMMITTED	18,131,000
Total LESS THAN ONE YEAR	3,725,000
Total 1-3 YEARS	8,900,000
Total 3-5 YEARS	1,000,000
Total MORE THAN 5 YEARS	$ 4,506,000