De norske myndigheder har anført, at de handlede på samme måde, som en rationel erhvervsdrivende under markedsøkonomiske forhold ville have handlet, under genforhandlingsprocessen, idet de blot gjorde det muligt for Hurtigruten at overvinde nogle alvorlige finansielle vanskeligheder, sådan at virksomheden kunne fortsætte med at levere den vigtige public service-ydelse, som ingen anden virksomhed kunne levere på kort eller mellemlang sigt.
The Norwegian authorities have argued that they acted in a manner similar to a rational market operator during the renegotiation process, holding that they simply enabled Hurtigruten to overcome serious financial difficulties so that it could continue to provide the important public services that no other undertaking could provide in the short or medium term.