Document And Entity Information	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2012	Apr. 26, 2012
Document Type	10-Q
Amendment Flag	false
Document Period End Date	Mar. 31, 2012
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2012
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q3
Trading Symbol	AES
Entity Registrant Name	AES CORP
Entity Central Index Key	0000874761
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		767,489,830
Entity current reporting status	Yes
Entity voluntary filers	No
Entity Well Known Seasoned Issuer	Yes