Segment and Related Information (Income Statement and Balance Sheet Data) (Details) (USD $) In Millions, unless otherwise specified	3 Months Ended																12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2011		Sep. 30, 2011		Jun. 30, 2011		Mar. 31, 2011		Dec. 31, 2010		Sep. 30, 2010		Jun. 30, 2010		Mar. 31, 2010		Dec. 31, 2011		Dec. 31, 2010		Dec. 31, 2009
Segment Information (Numeric) [Abstract]
Additional tax expense recorded due to adjustments to tax basis																					$ 24
Income Statement Data
Revenues from external customers																	12,737		8,521		7,449
Net Income Attributable to PPL	454	[1]	444	[1]	196	[1]	401	[1]	355	[1]	248	[1]	85	[1]	250	[1]	1,495		938		407
Depreciation																	960		556		455
Amortization																	254		213		389
Unrealized (gains) losses on derivatives, and other hedging activities																	(314)		542		329
Interest Expense																	898		593		387
Income from Continuing Operations Before Income Taxes																	2,201		1,239		538
Income Taxes																	691		263		105
Cash Flow
Expenditures for long-lived assets																	2,556		1,639		1,261
Balance Sheet Data
Assets	42,648								32,837								42,648		32,837
Kentucky Regulated [Member]
Income Statement Data
Net Income Attributable to PPL																	221		26		0
Depreciation																	334		49		0
Amortization																	27	[2]	0		0
Unrealized (gains) losses on derivatives, and other hedging activities																	2	[3]	(1)	[3]	0
Interest Expense																	217	[4]	55	[4]	0
Income from Continuing Operations Before Income Taxes																	349		40		0
Income Taxes																	127	[5]	16	[5]	0
Deferred income taxes and investment tax credits																	218	[6]	51	[6]	0
Cash Flow
Expenditures for long-lived assets																	465		152		0
Balance Sheet Data
Assets	10,229	[7]							10,318	[7]							10,229	[7]	10,318	[7]
Kentucky Regulated [Member] | Utility Service [Member]
Income Statement Data
Revenues from external customers																	2,793	[8]	493	[8]	0
International Regulated [Member]
Income Statement Data
Revenues from external customers																	1,653		761		716
Net Income Attributable to PPL																	325		261		243
Depreciation																	218		117		115
Amortization																	83	[2]	13	[2]	(13)	[2]
Interest Income																	4		2		1
Interest Expense																	391	[4]	135	[4]	87	[4]
Income from Continuing Operations Before Income Taxes																	358		261		290
Income Taxes																	33	[5]	0		20	[5]
Deferred income taxes and investment tax credits																	(39)	[6]	17	[6]	12	[6]
Cash Flow
Expenditures for long-lived assets																	862		281		240
Balance Sheet Data
Assets	13,364								4,800								13,364		4,800
International Regulated [Member] | Utility Service [Member]
Income Statement Data
Revenues from external customers																	1,618		727		684
International Regulated [Member] | Energy Related Businesses [Member]
Income Statement Data
Revenues from external customers																	35		34		32
Pennsylvania Regulated [Member]
Income Statement Data
Intersegment revenues																	11		7		74
Net Income Attributable to PPL																	173		115		124
Depreciation																	146		136		128
Amortization																	7	[2]	(22)	[2]	312	[2]
Interest Income																	1		4		11
Interest Expense																	98	[4]	99	[4]	118	[4]
Income from Continuing Operations Before Income Taxes																	257		192		221
Income Taxes																	68	[5]	57	[5]	79	[5]
Deferred income taxes and investment tax credits																	106	[6]	198	[6]	(23)	[6]
Cash Flow
Expenditures for long-lived assets																	490		411		298
Balance Sheet Data
Assets	5,610								5,189								5,610		5,189
Pennsylvania Regulated [Member] | Utility Service [Member]
Income Statement Data
Revenues from external customers																	1,881		2,448		3,218
Supply [Member]
Income Statement Data
Revenues from external customers																	6,410		4,819		3,515
Intersegment revenues																	26	[8]	320	[8]	1,806	[8]
Net Income Attributable to PPL																	776	[3],[9]	612	[3]	40	[3]
Depreciation																	262		254		212
Amortization																	137	[2]	148	[2]	90	[2]
Unrealized (gains) losses on derivatives, and other hedging activities																	312	[3]	(541)	[3]	(329)	[3]
Interest Income																	2		2		2
Interest Expense																	192	[4]	224	[4]	182	[4]
Income from Continuing Operations Before Income Taxes																	1,237	[3]	860	[3]	27	[3]
Income Taxes																	463	[5]	228	[5]	6	[5]
Deferred income taxes and investment tax credits																	299	[6]	(15)	[6]	133	[6]
Cash Flow
Expenditures for long-lived assets																	739		795		723
Balance Sheet Data
Assets	13,445	[7]							12,530	[7]							13,445	[7]	12,530	[7]
Segment (Numeric) [Abstract]
The after-tax earnings impact, including reduced energy sales margins due to outage																	63
Supply [Member] | Energy [Member]
Income Statement Data
Revenues from external customers																	5,938	[3],[8]	4,444	[3],[8]	3,124	[3],[8]
Supply [Member] | Energy Related Businesses [Member]
Income Statement Data
Revenues from external customers																	472		375		391
Unallocated [Member]
Income Statement Data
Net Income Attributable to PPL																	0		(76)		0
Amortization																	0		74	[2]	0
Interest Expense																	0		80	[4]	0
Income from Continuing Operations Before Income Taxes																	0		(114)		0
Income Taxes																	$ 0		$ (38)	[5]	$ 0

[1] Quarterly results can vary depending on, among other things, weather and the forward pricing of power. In addition, earnings in 2011 and 2010 were affected by special items. Accordingly, comparisons among quarters of a year may not be indicative of overall trends and changes in operations.

[2] Represents non-cash expense items that include amortization of nuclear fuel, regulatory assets, debt discounts and premiums, debt issuance costs, emission allowances and RECs.

[3] Includes unrealized gains and losses from economic activity. See Note 19 for additional information.

[4] Includes interest expense with affiliate(s).

[5] Represents both current and deferred income taxes, including investment tax credits.

[6] Represents a non-cash expense item that is also included in “Income Taxes.”

[7] A portion of the goodwill related to the 2010 LKE acquisition has been attributed to PPL's Supply segment.

[8] See Note 1 for additional information on Utility Revenue.

[9] In April 2011, during the PPL Susquehanna Unit 2 refueling and generation uprate outages, a planned inspection of the Unit 2 turbine revealed cracks in certain of its low pressure turbine blades. As a precaution, PPL Susquehanna also took Unit 1 out of service in mid-May to inspect that unit's turbine blades. This inspection revealed cracked blades similar to those found in Unit 2. Replacement of these blades was completed, significantly extending these outages. The after-tax earnings impact, including reduced energy sales margins and repair expense for both units was $63 million in 2011.