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FINANCING - Dividend Restrictions and Structural Considerations Narrative (Details) $ in Billions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2023 USD ($)
Variable Interest Entity [Line Items]
Undistributed retained earnings of subsidiaries	$ 5.5
Southern Company Gas
Variable Interest Entity [Line Items]
Retained earnings, unappropriated	$ 1.7
Southern Company Gas | Southern Company Gas Capital
Variable Interest Entity [Line Items]
Noncontrolling ownership percentage held by parent	100.00%

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A segregation of retained earnings which is available for dividend distribution. Earnings not paid out as dividends but instead reinvested in the core business or used to pay off debt. Unappropriated profit is part of shareholder equity. Also called cumulative distributions or earned surplus or accumulated earnings or unappropriated profit.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Topic 944
-SubTopic 210
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Section S99
-Paragraph 1
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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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Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
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