Nuvoco Vistas, the Nirma Group’s cement division, has emerged as the frontrunner to acquire the Emami Group’s nine million tonne per annum cement business for Rs 5,500-6,000 crore enterprise value to consolidate its position in the east. The Nuvoco bid is likely to trump competing offers from top cement makers such as UltraTech, Star Cement and Ambuja, said people in the know. This is the second time Nuvoco is set to create an upset beating bigger players.