Consolidated Balance Sheets (Parenthetical) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Sep. 30, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014
Current assets [Abstract]
Customer accounts receivable, allowance for doubtful accounts	$ 2,081	$ 922
Shareholders’ equity [Abstract]
Common stock, par value (in dollars per share)	$ 1	$ 1
Common stock, authorized (in shares)	100,000,000	100,000,000
Common stock, issued (in shares)	61,058,918	61,051,286
Common stock, outstanding (in shares)	60,482,051	60,421,467
Treasury stock, at cost (in shares)	576,867	629,819
Cleco Power [Member]
Current assets [Abstract]
Customer accounts receivable, allowance for doubtful accounts	$ 2,081	$ 922