The B5LH is powered by Volvo's in-house parallel hybrid drive train that couple its I-SAM motor to a 5-litre D5-series diesel engine.

A lithium battery pack is mounted just behind the front left wheel, powering the I-SAM motor system.

In service, Volvo claims that the B5LH achieves 35% improvement on fuel consumption and reduces the emission of greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide by an equivalent amount.

[5] At least four Volvo 7700 Hybrid prototypes were built in late 2008 for initial testing before some of them from 2009 toured many countries as demonstrators, only having short periods of proper duty at various places.

In early 2012 two of them ended up in the city of Alta in Finnmark, Norway for year-long testing in the arctic climate with local operator Boreal Transport.

[8][9] The Land Transport Authority purchased fifty MCV Evora bodied Volvo B5LH buses for S$30 million.

[15] In many cases, a number of operators took deliveries of B5LHs alongside its main rival, the serial hybrid drive Alexander Dennis Enviro400H.

The B5LH was highly popular with both Arriva's London and regional operations, where following the successful trial of the first four B5LHs delivered in 2009, Arriva made further orders of B5LHs for its operations in London, Kent,[16] Manchester and Merseyside,[17][18] Northumbria and Yorkshire,[19][20] with a total of 259 examples being delivered with Wright Eclipse Gemini 2 bodies.