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|Exhibit 12(a)                                                                        |                              
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|CLECO CORPORATION                                                                   
|COMPUTATION OF RATIO OF EARNINGS TO FIXED CHARGES                                   
|AND EARNINGS TO COMBINED FIXED CHARGES                                              
|AND PREFERRED STOCK DIVIDENDS                                                       
|(UNAUDITED)                                                                         
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|Earnings from continuing operations                                                  | $     36,860                 
|Income taxes                                                                         | $     20,069                 
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|Earnings from continuing operations before income taxes                              | $            56,929          
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|Fixed charges:                                                                       |                              
|Interest, long-term debt                                                             | $     14,449                 
|Interest, other (including interest on short-term debt)                              | $                2,781       
|Amortization of debt expense, premium, net                                           | $                          27
|Portion of rentals representative of an interest factor                              | $          157               
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|Total fixed charges                                                                  |                              
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|Earnings from continuing operations before income taxes                              | $            56,929          
|Plus: total fixed charges from above                                                 | $            17,414          
|Plus: amortization of capitalized interest                                           | $                      183   
|Less: long-term interest capitalized                                                 | $                 (509)      
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|Earnings from continuing operations before income                                    |                              
|taxes and fixed charges                                                              | $            74,017          
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|Ratio of earnings to fixed charges                                                   |                              
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|Total fixed charges from above                                                       |                              
|Preferred stock dividends*                                                           |                              
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|Total fixed charges and preferred stock dividends                                    | $     17,951                 
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|Ratio of earnings to combined fixed charges and                                      |                              
|preferred stock dividends                                                            | 4.12                         
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|*  Preferred stock dividends multiplied by the ratio of pretax income to net income.