By 2020, a new super museum will be constructed in central Copenhagen, dubbed the Natural History Museum of Denmark.

Blending together three of the city's existing institutions, the Natural History Museum, the Geological Museum and the Botanical Museum, the new facility is expected to be one of the largest of its kind in the world.

Following a recent DKR550m (€73.933m, US$91m, £58.1m) grant from several private foundations, the University of Copenhagen is now able to build the new museum, which will include an expansion of some existing buildings.

Danish practice Lundgaard & Tranberg Arkitekter – in partnership with Claus Pryds – is designing the new museum. It is expected that the entire project will cost around DKR950m (€128m, US$157m, £100.4m) to construct.

The new designs boast 12,000sq m (129,166sq ft) of exhibition space, with a new ‘Whale Hall’ acting as a centrepiece. This will be used to showcase some of the museum's 50 whale species in its collection, as well as providing entry points and access to the rest of the building. A new underground facility for archiving and storage will also be constructed as well as spaces for research, teaching and administration.

Despite the new buildings, the museum’s main focus will remain on the Botanical Gardens. In a statement, museum director, Morten Meldgaard, said: “Being so close to the Botanical Garden is part of what will make the new museum so unique. There are very few places in the world where you can explore all of nature in one museum.”

With this in mind, it is hoped that, once complete, the museum will attract more than 400,000 visitors a year.