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Earnings Per Share and Common Stock (Details) (USD $) In Millions, except Per Share data, unless otherwise specified	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended		0 Months Ended		9 Months Ended	0 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013	Sep. 30, 2014	Sep. 30, 2013	Sep. 05, 2014 Forward Contracts [Member]	Feb. 26, 2014 Forward Contracts [Member]	Sep. 30, 2014 Forward Contracts [Member]	Mar. 04, 2014 Options Held [Member]
Forward Contract Indexed to Issuer's Equity [Line Items]
Forward Contract Indexed to Issuer's Equity, Indexed Shares						2.8
Common Stock Issued - Option Agreement (in shares)					1.4			0.4
Proceeds from Issuance of Common Stock - Option Agreement					$ 65.0			$ 20.2
Forward Contract Indexed to Issuer's Equity, Forward Rate Per Share						$ 48.01
Forward Contract Indexed to Issuer's Equity, Dilutive Securities (in shares)							0
Antidilutive Shares Excluded from Diluted EPS Computation	0	0	0	0
Earnings Per Share - Basic [Abstract]
Net Income Attributable to ALLETE	41.6	25.2	91.9	71.7
Average Common Shares	42.9	39.8	42.1	39.4
Earnings Per Share	$ 0.97	$ 0.63	$ 2.18	$ 1.82
Earnings Per Share - Diluted [Abstract]
Net Income to Attributable ALLETE	41.6	25.2	91.9	71.7
Average Common Shares	42.9	39.9	42.3	39.5
Earnings Per Share	$ 0.97	$ 0.63	$ 2.17	$ 1.81
Dilutive Securities (in shares)	0	0.1	0.2	0.1
Common Stock Issued - Pension Plan (in shares)			0.4
Proceeds from Issuance of Common Stock - Pension Plan			$ 19.5	$ 0

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Additional shares included in the calculation of diluted EPS as a result of the potentially dilutive effect of equity forward arrangements using the treasury stock method.

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Securities (including those issuable pursuant to contingent stock agreements) that could potentially dilute basic earnings per share (EPS) or earnings per unit (EPU) in the future that were not included in the computation of diluted EPS or EPU because to do so would increase EPS or EPU amounts or decrease loss per share or unit amounts for the period presented.

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Total number of common shares of an entity that have been sold or granted to shareholders (includes common shares that were issued, repurchased and remain in the treasury). These shares represent capital invested by the firm's shareholders and owners, and may be all or only a portion of the number of shares authorized. Shares issued include shares outstanding and shares held in the treasury.

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The amount of net income (loss) for the period per each share of common stock or unit outstanding during the reporting period.

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Net income after adjustments for dividends on preferred stock (declared in the period) and/or cumulative preferred stock (accumulated for the period).

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