Section 1. Section 7(i) of Republic Act 6173, as amended, is hereby amended as follows:

"Sec. 7(i). Whenever the Commission has determined that there is a shortage of any petroleum product affecting public interest, it may, in order to relieve the shortage, authorize or approve the importation by any agency or instrumentality of the government or a government owned or controlled corporation of crude oil or petroleum product from any available source, and take such other steps as it may consider necessary, including the temporary adjustment of the levels of prices of petroleum products and the adoption of a mechanism which will require the payment to the Special Fund created under the next succeeding paragraph by persons or entities engaged in the petroleum industry of such amounts, as may be determined by the Commission, which will enable the importer to recover its cost of importation."