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Face (par) amount of debt instrument at time of issuance.

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Contractual interest rate for funds borrowed, under the debt agreement.

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Line items represent financial concepts included in a table. These concepts are used to disclose reportable information associated with domain members defined in one or many axes to the table.

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Gross amount of debt extinguished.

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No definition available.

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Difference between the fair value of payments made and the carrying amount of debt which is extinguished prior to maturity.

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The cash outflow for debt initially having maturity due after one year or beyond the normal operating cycle, if longer.

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Debt - Non-Recourse Debt Narrative (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended			6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2019	Mar. 31, 2019	Jun. 30, 2018	Jun. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2018	Mar. 31, 2018
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Debt defaults at risk of causing cross default	0			0
Loss on extinguishment of debt	$ 51		$ 6	$ 61	$ 176
Nonrecourse Debt [Member] \| AES Southland [Domain]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Loss on extinguishment of debt		$ 11
Issued new debt		550
Repayments of Long-term Debt		(450)
Nonrecourse Debt [Member] \| AES Tiete [Domain]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Loss on extinguishment of debt		0
Issued new debt		252
Repayments of Long-term Debt		$ 0
Nonrecourse Debt [Member] \| Alto Maipo [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Loss on extinguishment of debt				3
Issued new debt	574			574
Repayments of Long-term Debt				(553)
Nonrecourse Debt [Member] \| DPL Subsidiary [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Loss on extinguishment of debt				43
Issued new debt	825			825
Repayments of Long-term Debt				(835)
4.0% Senior Notes Due 2021 [Domain] [Domain] \| Senior Notes [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Issued new debt						$ 500
3.95% Senior Notes due 2049 [Domain] \| Senior Notes [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Issued new debt	$ 425			$ 425
Debt Instrument, Interest Rate, Stated Percentage	3.95%			3.95%
Variable Rate [Domain]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Extinguishment of Debt, Amount				$ 435
Variable Rate [Domain] \| Senior Notes [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Issued new debt	$ 445			445
4.35% Senior Notes due 2029 [Domain] \| Senior Notes [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Issued new debt	$ 400			$ 400
Debt Instrument, Interest Rate, Stated Percentage	4.35%			4.35%
7.25% Senior Notes due 2021 [Domain]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Extinguishment of Debt, Amount				$ 400
7.25% Senior Notes due 2021 [Domain] \| Senior Notes [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Issued new debt	$ 780			$ 780
Unsecured Debt [Member] \| 4.0% Senior Notes Due 2021 [Domain] [Domain]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Debt Instrument, Interest Rate, Stated Percentage						4.00%
Unsecured Debt [Member] \| 7.25% Senior Notes due 2021 [Domain]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Debt Instrument, Interest Rate, Stated Percentage	7.25%			7.25%
Unsecured Debt [Member] \| 7.25% Senior Notes due 2021 [Domain] \| Nonrecourse Debt [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Loss on extinguishment of debt				$ 43