v3.19.1

Derivative Instruments (Details) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2019 USD ($) MMBTU MWh t	Dec. 31, 2018 USD ($) MMBTU MWh t
Natural Gas [Member]
Derivative [Line Items]
Derivative, Nonmonetary Notional Amount, Energy Measure | MMBTU	1,093	1,045
Environmental Credits [Member]
Derivative [Line Items]
Derivative, Nonmonetary Notional Amount, Mass | t	12	13
Interest Rate Hedging Instruments
Derivative [Line Items]
Derivative, Notional Amount | $	$ 4,500	$ 4,500
Short [Member] | Power [Member]
Derivative [Line Items]
Derivative, Nonmonetary Notional Amount, Energy Measure | MWh	167	161

X

- Definition

Aggregate notional amount specified by the derivative(s). Expressed as an absolute value.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher SEC
-Name Regulation S-X (SX)
-Number 210
-Article 12
-Section 13
-Sentence Column B

+ Details

Name:	invest_DerivativeNotionalAmount
Namespace Prefix:	invest_
Data Type:	xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type:	na
Period Type:	instant

X

- Definition

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.

+ References

No definition available.

+ Details

Name:	us-gaap_DerivativeLineItems
Namespace Prefix:	us-gaap_
Data Type:	xbrli:stringItemType
Balance Type:	na
Period Type:	duration

X

- Definition

Nominal energy measure used to calculate payments on a derivative instrument.

+ References

No definition available.

+ Details

Name:	us-gaap_DerivativeNonmonetaryNotionalAmountEnergyMeasure
Namespace Prefix:	us-gaap_
Data Type:	num:energyItemType
Balance Type:	na
Period Type:	duration

X

- Definition

Nominal mass used to calculate payments on a derivative instrument.

+ References

No definition available.

+ Details

Name:	us-gaap_DerivativeNonmonetaryNotionalAmountMass
Namespace Prefix:	us-gaap_
Data Type:	num:massItemType
Balance Type:	na
Period Type:	duration

X

- Details

Name:	us-gaap_DerivativeInstrumentRiskAxis=srt_NaturalGasReservesMember
Namespace Prefix:
Data Type:	na
Balance Type:
Period Type:

X

- Details

Name:	us-gaap_DerivativeInstrumentRiskAxis=cpn_EnvironmentalCreditsMember
Namespace Prefix:
Data Type:	na
Balance Type:
Period Type:

X

- Details

Name:	us-gaap_DerivativeInstrumentRiskAxis=us-gaap_InterestRateContractMember
Namespace Prefix:
Data Type:	na
Balance Type:
Period Type:

X

- Details

Name:	us-gaap_PositionAxis=us-gaap_ShortMember
Namespace Prefix:
Data Type:	na
Balance Type:
Period Type:

X

- Details

Name:	us-gaap_DerivativeInstrumentRiskAxis=cpn_PowerMember
Namespace Prefix:
Data Type:	na
Balance Type:
Period Type: