| **Clayton Williams Energy Acquisition - Pro Forma Information (Details) - Clayton Williams Energy - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, $ in Millions** | 12 Months Ended |
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| **Business Acquisition [Line Items]**                                                                                                            |            |   |
| Revenues                                                                                                                                         | $ 4,304         | $ 3,651 |
| Net Loss and Comprehensive Loss Attributable to Noble Energy                                                                                     | $ (678)         | $ (1,082) |
| Net Loss Attributable to Noble Energy per Common Share - Basic and Diluted (in dollars per share)                                                | $ (1.39)        | $ (2.23) |

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| - 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.
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| X                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          |
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| - Definition
The pro forma basic net income per share for a period as if the business combination or combinations had been completed at the beginning of a period.
+ References
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| X                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   |
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| - Definition
The pro forma net Income or Loss for the period as if the business combination or combinations had been completed at the beginning of a period.
+ References
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| X                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  |
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| - Definition
The pro forma revenue for a period as if the business combination or combinations had been completed at the beginning of the period.
+ References
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| X                                                                                                                                                       |
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