Pension Plan and Employee Benefits - Narrative (Details) - USD ($)	1 Months Ended	3 Months Ended		12 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2019	Mar. 31, 2020	Mar. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2019
Pension Plan
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Discretionary contribution	$ 12,300,000
Pension contributions required through 2024				$ 66,500,000
Expected contributions in 2020		$ 15,500,000
Defined benefit plan contributions by employer		4,870,000	$ 2,952,000
Other Benefits Plan
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Defined benefit plan contributions by employer		1,257,000	643,000
Assets held-in-trust, noncurrent		0
SERP
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Defined benefit plan contributions by employer		1,545,000	1,295,000
CLECO POWER | Other Benefits Plan
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Defined benefit plan contributions by employer		1,200,000	700,000
CLECO POWER | SERP
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Defined benefit plan contributions by employer		200,000	300,000
Other Subsidiaries | Pension Plan
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Defined benefit plan contributions by employer		$ 400,000	$ 500,000