Litigation, Other Commitments and Contingencies, and Disclosures about Guarantees, Fuel Transportation Agreement and Capital Leases (Details) - Cleco Power [Member] $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017 USD ($) Barge	Dec. 31, 2016 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012 Barge
Capital Leased Assets [Line Items]
Operating Lease, Expense	$ 1,200
Barges [Member]
Capital Leased Assets [Line Items]
Capital Leased Assets, Number of Units | Barge			42
Number of Barges | Barge	42
Repayment of capital lease obligation for barges	$ 2,500	$ 3,700
Revenue received from subleases of barges to third parties		100
Analysis of leased property under capital leases by major classes [Abstract]
Barges	0	11,350
Less: accumulated amortization	0	9,729
Net capital leases	0	$ 1,621
Maximum [Member] | Barges [Member]
Capital Leased Assets [Line Items]
Revenue received from subleases of barges to third parties	$ 300