A hybrid electric vehicle includes an internal-combustion engine (ICE) and an electric machine coupled to a battery, an off-board power (OBP) system, and a controller, which are configured to power internal vehicle and battery charge electrical loads, and external electrical loads. The controller monitors the electrical loads, and responds to an OBP signal identifying an external electrical load, and commands the ICE and electric machine to generate a combined-power greater than or equal to the loads. This ensures that a battery state-of-charge is sustained and not depleted by power delivery to the external loads. The controller also generates a power-difference signal that identifies a difference between power generated by the electric machine and power consumed by the internal and external OFB electrical loads, such that the controller can adjusted the generated combined-power to minimize the power-difference signal and battery charge-discharge-cycles.