The Cretaceous K1b reservoir of the K oil field has an average burial depth of 193 m, with an average oil saturation of 63%. Initially, cold production methods were employed, characterized by low initial well productivity and significant decline in output. All wells, whether located in structurally higher or lower areas, produced both oil and water, with an average daily oil production of 0.7 t/d and a water cut of 72.7%. Considering the high risks associated with thermal recovery, these reserves remained underutilized. To address the difficulty of effectively exploiting such reserves through cold production, a feasibility study was conducted for thermal recovery in low oil saturation heavy oil reservoirs. Based on the success of steam huff and puff trials in 15 wells, a thermal recovery development plan was developed, with subsequent transition to steam flooding. A well pattern of inverted nine-spot with 70 m × 100 m spacing was chosen. It was recommended to drill 440 new wells over five years, and that these wells be put into production using steam huff and puff, transitioning to steam flooding after four cycles. By designing an orthogonal experimental scheme for steam huff and puff, the daily benefit during the steam huff and puff phase is taken as the objective function to optimize the injection-production parameters of the huff and puff phase. As of the end of December 2023, an average of two cycles of huff and puff were completed, yielding a cumulative oil production of 904,000 t, sustaining a daily output of over 500 t/d for more than three years, and achieving a comprehensive oil-to-gas ratio of 0.45. The success of steam huff and puff development in this field reveals the cyclical steam huff and puff characteristics of such reservoirs and provides a successful case study for the development of similar reservoirs.