Greece signs 3.3 billion euro lease for Athens toll highway, sources say

ATHENS (Reuters) - Greece has signed a 3.3 billion euro ($3.64 billion) deal for the lease of a toll highway in Athens with GEK Terna, two sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters on Thursday.

The deal will be key for Greece to meet its fiscal target for revenue of 5.8 billion euros from privatisations and stake sales in banks this year.

One of the sources said that the deal was signed earlier on Thursday and that the aim was to collect the money by the end of the year.

GEK Terna was named last year as the preferred bidder in a tender for a 25-year concession to operate the 70-km (44-mile) Attica Motorway.

Plans called for the state to collect 7.5% of gross revenue from tolls annually. Attica Highway is one of the most used in the country and generates revenues of hundreds of millions of euros annually.

Greece uses the proceeds from asset sales to reduce its public debt, the highest in the euro zone.

(Reporting by Lefteris Papadimas and Angeliki Koutantou)