Norwegian King Harald V Monday accepted the resignation of the government led by Jens Stoltenberg.
The coalition government of the Labour Party and two other left-centre parties, who lost the majority in the September parliamentary election, will stay as the caretaker pending a new government is formed, Xinhua reported.
King Harald V is now expected to contact Conservative Party leader Erna Solberg and ask her to form the new government.
The Conservatives and three other centre-right parties together won 96 seats in the 169-member parliament.
The Conservatives and the Progress Party have agreed to form a coalition government with promised support from the Social Democratics and the Liberals.
After being the prime minister for eight years, Stoltenberg said Monday that he is looking forward to driving a car alone with his wife, without the security people around him.