Derivative Financial Instruments and Hedging Activities - Derivatives (Details) $ in Thousands, bbl in Millions	3 Months Ended		12 Months Ended
	Nov. 30, 2021 USD ($) bbl	Nov. 30, 2020 USD ($)	Aug. 31, 2021 USD ($) bbl
Derivative [Line Items]
Derivative Liability, Noncurrent	$ 1,600		$ 4,800
Derivative Asset, Fair Value, Amount Not Offset Against Collateral	459,641		558,993
Derivative Asset, Fair Value, Gross Amount Not Offset on Balance Sheet	7,674		9,756
Derivative Liability, Fair Value, Amount Not Offset Against Collateral	311,272		441,126
Derivative Liability, Collateral, Right to Reclaim Cash, Offset	1,478		2,485
Derivative Liability, Fair Value, Gross Amount Not Offset on Balance Sheet	8,342		9,756
Embedded Derivative, Gain on Embedded Derivative	1,500	$ 1,600
Derivative Asset, Noncurrent, Excluding Fair Value Hedges	21,300		21,600
CF Nitrogen LLC [Member]
Derivative [Line Items]
Annual Payment Receivable Contingent On Investment Credit Rating	5,000
Embedded derivative asset	13,000
Foreign exchange derivatives | Not Designated as Hedging Instrument
Derivative [Line Items]
Derivative Asset, Fair Value, Amount Not Offset Against Collateral	4,438		13,847
Derivative Asset, Fair Value, Gross Amount Not Offset on Balance Sheet	4,045		5,582
Derivative Liability, Fair Value, Amount Not Offset Against Collateral	23,418		2,924
Derivative Liability, Collateral, Right to Reclaim Cash, Offset	0		0
Derivative Liability, Fair Value, Gross Amount Not Offset on Balance Sheet	4,045		5,582
Derivative, Notional Amount			1,200,000
Embedded Derivative Financial Instruments [Member] | Not Designated as Hedging Instrument
Derivative [Line Items]
Derivative Asset, Fair Value, Amount Not Offset Against Collateral	13,034		16,488
Derivative Asset, Fair Value, Gross Amount Not Offset on Balance Sheet	0		0
Commodity derivatives | Not Designated as Hedging Instrument
Derivative [Line Items]
Derivative Asset, Fair Value, Amount Not Offset Against Collateral	442,169		528,658
Derivative Asset, Fair Value, Gross Amount Not Offset on Balance Sheet	3,629		4,174
Derivative Liability, Fair Value, Amount Not Offset Against Collateral	287,854		438,202
Derivative Liability, Collateral, Right to Reclaim Cash, Offset	1,478		2,485
Derivative Liability, Fair Value, Gross Amount Not Offset on Balance Sheet	$ 4,297		$ 4,174
Cash Flow Hedging
Derivative [Line Items]
Aggregate notional amount of cash flow hedges (in barrels) | bbl	3.4		2.7