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Variable Interest Entities | 12 Months Ended
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Dec. 31, 2019
Variable Interest Entities [Abstract] |
Variable Interest Entities | Variable Interest Entities CMS Energy has variable interests in T.E.S. Filer City, Grayling, Genesee, and Craven. While CMS Energy owns 50 percent of each partnership, it is not the primary beneficiary of any of these partnerships because decision making is shared among unrelated parties, and no one party has the ability to direct the activities that most significantly impact the entities’ economic performance, such as operations and maintenance, plant dispatch, and fuel strategy. The partners must agree on all major decisions for each of the partnerships. Presented in the following table is information about these partnerships:
Name | Nature of the Entity | Nature of CMS Energy’s Involvement
T.E.S. Filer City | Coal-fueled power generator | Long-term PPA between partnership and Consumers
Employee assignment agreement
Grayling | Wood waste-fueled power generator | Long-term PPA between partnership and Consumers
Reduced dispatch agreement with Consumers¹
Operating and management contract
Genesee | Wood waste-fueled power generator | Long-term PPA between partnership and Consumers
Reduced dispatch agreement with Consumers¹
Operating and management contract
Guarantee of fixed rate debt²
Deferred collection of certain receivables³
Craven | Wood waste-fueled power generator | Operating and management contract
1 | Reduced dispatch agreements allow the facilities to be dispatched based on the market price of power compared with the cost of production of the plants. This results in fuel cost savings that each partnership shares with Consumers’ customers.
2 | CMS Energy’s guarantee is capped at $3 million annually through 2021. For additional details on this guarantee, see Note 4, Contingencies and Commitments—Guarantees.
3 | CMS Energy’s maximum exposure to loss from these receivables is $10 million.
The creditors of these partnerships do not have recourse to the general credit of CMS Energy or Consumers, except as noted in the table above. Consumers has not provided any financial or other support during the periods presented that was not previously contractually required. CMS Energy’s investment in these partnerships is included in investments on its consolidated balance sheets in the amount of $71 million as of December 31, 2019 and $69 million as of December 31, 2018.

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- Definition Variable Interest Entities [Abstract] + References No definition available. + Details
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- Definition Disclosure of variable interest entities (VIE), including, but not limited to the nature, purpose, size, and activities of the VIE, the carrying amount and classification of consolidated assets that are collateral for the VIE's obligations, lack of recourse if creditors (or beneficial interest holders) of a consolidated VIE have no recourse to the general credit of the primary beneficiary. An enterprise that holds a significant variable interest in a VIE but is not the primary beneficiary may disclose the nature of its involvement with the VIE and when that involvement began, the nature, purpose, size, and activities of the VIE and the enterprise's maximum exposure to loss as a result of its involvement with the VIE. + References No definition available. + Details
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