Consolidated Balance Sheets - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2023	Dec. 31, 2022
CURRENT ASSETS
Cash and cash equivalents	$ 1,426,000,000	$ 1,374,000,000
Restricted cash	370,000,000	536,000,000
Short-term investments	395,000,000	730,000,000
Accounts receivable, net of allowance of $15 and $5, respectively	1,420,000,000	1,799,000,000
Inventory	712,000,000	1,055,000,000
Prepaid expenses	177,000,000	98,000,000
Other current assets, net of allowance of $14 and $2, respectively	1,387,000,000	1,533,000,000
Current held-for-sale assets	762,000,000	518,000,000
Total current assets	6,649,000,000	7,643,000,000
Property, Plant and Equipment:
Land	522,000,000	470,000,000
Electric generation, distribution assets and other	30,190,000,000	26,599,000,000
Accumulated depreciation	(8,602,000,000)	(8,651,000,000)
Construction in progress	7,848,000,000	4,621,000,000
Property, plant and equipment, net	29,958,000,000	23,039,000,000
Other Assets:
Investments in and advances to affiliates	941,000,000	952,000,000
Debt service reserves and other deposits	194,000,000	177,000,000
Goodwill	348,000,000	362,000,000
Other intangible assets, net of accumulated amortization of $498 and $434, respectively	2,243,000,000	1,841,000,000
Deferred Tax Assets, Tax Deferred Expense	396,000,000	319,000,000
Other noncurrent assets, net of allowance of $9 and $77, respectively	3,259,000,000	4,030,000,000
Noncurrent held-for-sale assets	811,000,000	0
Total other assets	8,192,000,000	7,681,000,000
TOTAL ASSETS	44,799,000,000	38,363,000,000
CURRENT LIABILITIES
Accounts payable	2,199,000,000	1,730,000,000
Accrued interest	315,000,000	249,000,000
Accrued non-income taxes	278,000,000	249,000,000
Supplier financing arrangements	974,000,000	662,000,000
Accrued and other liabilities	$ 1,334,000,000	$ 1,489,000,000
Short-Term Debt, Recourse Status [Extensible Enumeration]	Recourse [Member]	Recourse [Member]
Non-recourse debt, including $1,080 and $416, respectively, related to variable interest entities	$ 3,932,000,000	$ 1,758,000,000
Current held-for-sale liabilities	499,000,000	354,000,000
Total current liabilities	9,731,000,000	6,491,000,000
NONCURRENT LIABILITIES
Recourse debt	4,264,000,000	3,894,000,000
Non-recourse debt, including $1,715 and $2,295, respectively, related to variable interest entities	18,482,000,000	17,846,000,000
Deferred income taxes	1,245,000,000	1,139,000,000
Other noncurrent liabilities	3,114,000,000	3,168,000,000
Noncurrent held-for-sale liabilities	514,000,000	0
Total noncurrent liabilities	27,619,000,000	26,047,000,000
Commitments and Contingencies (see Notes 12 and 13)
Redeemable stock of subsidiaries	1,464,000,000	1,321,000,000
THE AES CORPORATION STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY
Preferred stock (without par value, 50,000,000 shares authorized; 1,043,050 issued and outstanding at December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022)	838,000,000	838,000,000
Common stock ($0.01 par value, 1,200,000,000 shares authorized; 819,051,591 issued and 669,693,234 outstanding at December 31, 2023 and 818,790,001 issued and 668,743,464 outstanding at December 31, 2022)	8,000,000	8,000,000
Additional paid-in capital	6,355,000,000	6,688,000,000
Accumulated deficit	(1,386,000,000)	(1,635,000,000)
Accumulated other comprehensive loss	(1,514,000,000)	(1,640,000,000)
Treasury stock, at cost (149,358,357 and 150,046,537 shares, respectively)	(1,813,000,000)	(1,822,000,000)
Total AES Corporation stockholders’ equity	2,488,000,000	2,437,000,000
NONCONTROLLING INTERESTS	3,497,000,000	2,067,000,000
Total equity	5,985,000,000	4,504,000,000
TOTAL LIABILITIES AND EQUITY	44,799,000,000	38,363,000,000
Consolidated Variable Interest Entities [Member]
CURRENT LIABILITIES
Non-recourse debt, including $1,080 and $416, respectively, related to variable interest entities	1,080,000,000	416,000,000
NONCURRENT LIABILITIES
Non-recourse debt, including $1,715 and $2,295, respectively, related to variable interest entities	$ 1,715,000,000	$ 2,295,000,000