government sold it to Eiendomsinvest, which outbid Spisevognselskapet by several million kroner. Dissolution Narvesen had an exclusive agreement with NSB to operate newsagent's shops at all railway stations, except in stations with restaurants, which were operated by Spisevognselskapet. Narvesen had a near-monopoly on newsagents in Norway, and rented facilities in many public places. The owners of Narvesen intended to create a foundation to obtain the company; when plans for this started in 1972, they had difficulties finding a way to transfer shares to the foundation without having to pay tax on the transaction. However, the tax laws permitted a tax-free transaction if it was part of a restructuring. A merger with Spisevognselskapet would be considered a restructuring, and in 1974 Fritt Ord was established to take over Narvesen's owners' share of the company. The agreement between Narvesen and NSB was made in July 1974; in December it was passed by Parliament, although the Conservative Party and Progress Party voted against the merger. A.S Narvesen–Spisevognselskapet was established on 1 January 1975. Fritt Ord owned 50% of the new company and NSB 41%. It assumed the Narvesen name in 1979. By the late 1980s, the company had sold all its hotel operations. The merged company retained the obligation to operate dining services on the trains, which put them in need of considerable subsidies from NSB. In 1988, NSB decided to organize the operation of the dining services through tendered contracts; the first contract (from 1990 through 1995) was won by TogService, a Narvesen subsidiary. The owners had an agreement that neither could sell without the approval of the other. In 1995 NSB sold its shares with Fritt Ord's approval, and the company was listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange. In 1999, Fritt Ord reduced its stock share in Narvesen from 51% to 34%. In the fall of 2000, Fritt Ord accepted a proposal to merge Narvesen with the Reitan Group. The merged company was named ReitanNarvesen; Fritt Ord held 16.2% of its shares. In November 2001 Fritt Ord sold its shares of ReitanNarvesen, which was renamed Reitan Handel and delisted from the Oslo Stock Exchange. Notes Sources Books and journal articles News articles and encyclopaedia entries Norwegian State Railways (1883–1996) 1975 disestablishments in Norway Defunct companies of Norway Transport companies established in 1918 Defunct hotel chains Restaurant chains in Norway Hotels in Norway Norwegian companies established in 1918