Now those dishes are paying off in more ways than one.

Since the start of the year, officials have seen about a $1,000 savings in electricity costs because of the dishes, which power City Hall in Belen.

The dishes, which were installed last July, are expected to save the city about 46 percent, or $20,000, once Belen starts to receive renewable energy credits from PNM.

PNM was part of a hearing in January by the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission that is expected to clear the way for the city to receive the credits, 13 cents per kilowatt-hour that the city produces in addition to credits that go toward future bills.

The city fought for months to have the technology, which produces thermal energy, included in the REC program, and PNM has included the technology in the new Solar Performance Program as part of its 2010 procurement plan expected to be passed by the commission in August.

"The money from (our energy bill) goes into a general fund for other expenses that we have," said Andrew DiCamillo, planning and zoning director for the city. "The credits are accumulating, and we will get that in one lump sum (pending the approval of the procurement plan)."

DiCamillo said the city will start realizing even more savings when the dishes start operating on weekends and holidays once a program is written so the dishes can be operated from an off-site location.

Officials from Infinia Corp., which manufactures the dishes, have been present at the site to insure the equipment is operating efficiently. Belen's system is one of four public sites in the country.

Others are at Sandia Laboratories in Albuquerque and in California and Washington State.

"People can drive down to the City of Belen, park in the parking lot and walk right up," said Charlie Walker, director of U.S. commercial sales for Infini. "People want to see the dishes operating. The City of Belen is an excellent visual representation of how the units operate."

Karl Bossert was one of those people.

Bossert, who is a co-owner of S and B Energy, flew to Belen from Haiku, Hawaii, in February to get a glimpse of the dishes. He said he is undecided about buying some of the units, but said they are ideal because of their ability and small size.

"People want to view the plains," said Bossert, who lives in Maui. "They don't want to put a 30 to 40 feet dish in front of someone's open view of the ocean."

Bossert said the appeal of the dishes is higher for him after seeing in person, instead of through hearsay, how they impact others.

"When you go to City Hall and talk to people, it's interesting," Bossert said. "(The dishes) are not bothering anybody. It speaks volumes about the technology. The real life experience goes a long way."